Russian Elena Dementieva suddenly became a strong contender in the upcoming U.S. Open after she won the prestigious Rogers Cup title last Sunday, beating compatriot Maria Sharapova 6-4, 6-3. The title win also propelled the Russian atop the US Open Series rankings.

This served as the first time for an all-Russian final in the tournament’s history. Dementieva stormed into the finals after defeating no. 2 Serena Williams, a sweet revenge after the former lost their previous encounter at the Wimbledon semifinals last month.

Here are the winners of the ATP and WTA tournaments held from August 17-23, 2009.

Rogers Cup (WTA) – Toronto, Canada

Singles:  Elena Dementieva (RUS)
Doubles: Nuria Llagostera Vives / Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez
Prize money:  $350,000 (singles),  $100,000 (doubles)

Cincinnati Masters (ATP) – Cincinnati, Ohio

Singles: Roger Federer (SUI)
Doubles: Daniel Nestor / Nenad Zimonjic
Prize Money:  $443,500 (singles),  $175,000 (doubles)

August 23, 2009:

Singles – Finals

(4) Elena Dementieva (RUS) d. Maria Sharapova (RUS) 64 63

Here are the winners of the ATP and WTA tournaments held from August 10-16, 2009.

Rogers Cup (ATP) – Montreal, Canada

Singles:  Andy Murray (GBR)
Doubles: Mahesh Bhupathi / Mark Knowles
Prize money:  $443,500 (singles),  $175,000 (doubles)

Cincinnati Open (WTA) – Cincinnati, Ohio

Singles: Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
Doubles: Cara Black / Liezel Huber
Prize Money:  $350,000 (singles),  $100,000 (doubles)

World number one Dinara Safina proved that she’s the most consistent player in the women’s tour right now after reaching the final of the Cincinnati Open on Saturday. The Russian defeated Flavia Pennetta of Italy 6-2, 6-0 in the semifinals.This is Safina’s eighth final out of 14 tournaments she joined this season.

“Every match I feel better. Today, stepping on the court, I was feeling very good and confident. I was feeling very good stepping in,” Safina said after the match.

After a blistering performance at the Rogers Cup semifinals, British player Andy Murray gets assured of a new career-high ranking of no. 2 in next weeks rankings. This means that the four-year dominance of Swiss player Roger Federer and Spain’s Rafael Nadal has finally been snapped.

Murray booked his place in the final of this ATP 1000 tournament and will face Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina.

The Scottish player beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 6-4, 7-6 in almost two hours on Saturday while del Potro beat Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick 6-4, 2-6, 5-7 for the second straight week. The duo contested the Legg Mason Classic title last week with the Argentine prevailing and successfully defending the title.

Roger Federer’s 21-match winning streak came to an end on Friday after Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga staged a remarkable comeback in the third set to beat the world’s number one player 7-6, 1-6, 7-6.

Down 1-5 in the third set, the 2008 Australian Open finalist started finding his game and eventually broke Federer’s serve twice in order to even out the game.

” I didn’t feel real good when I was 5-1 down and Roger playing well and I had no solutions. I just told myself “You have to hit the ball one more time than him,” and I did it,” the world number seven said after the match.

Former world no. 1 Kim Clijsters clinched a wildcard into the main draw of next week’s Rogers Cup on Wednesday. The Belgian was one of the three players awarded with this opportunity.

The 26-year old made headlines this year when she announced her return to competitive tennis following a two-year absence on the WTA tour to have a family. This week, the comeback was made official when she took part in Cincinnati Open where she progressed to the third round after she defeated Swiss veteran Patty Schnyder on Wednesday.

August 15, 2009 – Semifinals

[3] A Murray (GBR) d J Tsonga (FRA) 64 76(8)
[6] J Del Potro (ARG) d A Roddick (USA) 46 62 75

The Rogers Cup tournament is one of the most well-attended tournaments in both ATP and WTA Tour calendars. High-ranking tennis stars from both tours are expected to participate this year in Montreal, Canada (Men) and Toronto (Women) and aim for the top prize, additional ranking points and a shot in leading the US Open Series rankings as well.

The much anticipated return of world number two Rafael Nadal in tennis starts in Montreal next week. This was confirmed by the Spaniard’s uncle and coach Toni Nadal on Monday.

Nadal did not take part in major competitions following his fourth round loss at the French Open due to tendinitis on both knees. His two-month absence cost him the number one ranking which was regained by his rival Roger Federer after the latter won the Wimbledon title for the sixth time.

World number two Rafael Nadal has started training for a major comeback in next month’s Rogers Cup in Montreal after being sidelined for almost two months due to knee injury.

The Spaniard lost the number one ranking after pulling out of Wimbledon where he was the defending champion. His rival Roger Federer won his 15th career Grand Slam title in the said grasscourt tournament and eventually reclaimed the top ranking.