Ivanovic ready to win the big one

Published by admin | Filed under Tennis News

Two years ago, well before she became a Grand Slam threat and the highest-ranked athlete on FHM’s 2008 Sexiest Women in the World poll (take that, Maria Sharapova), Ana Ivanovic could afford to dream an unknown 18-year-old’s bold dreams and say that some day, she’d love to play mixed doubles with top-ranked Roger Federer.

But now the Serbian can no longer afford to have a silly schoolgirl’s thoughts as the world’s No. 2-ranked player and with one of her close childhood friends, third-ranked Novak Djokovic, becoming Federer’s most in-your-face rival.

Playing with Ivanovic is likely unthinkable for Federer, who in Monte Carlo, screamed at Djokovic’s parents to be quiet while he was beating down their outspoken son — the same man who toppled him at the Australian Open and whose mother, Dijina, told FOXSports.com shortly afterward that Federer, the king, was dead.

Ivanovic is not the queen of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour yet, so no one has their sights directly set on her throne. But the attractive brunette is a striking princess in waiting and one who doesn’t want to wait much longer to reach the top.

After taking six weeks off, the defending champion will make her first tour appearance in Berlin this week and Ivanovic can no longer afford to go about her business quietly. She has a ton of points to defend between Germany and the L.A. tournament in late July, including the Berlin crown, the French Open final, the Wimbledon semifinals and the L.A. title.