NBTA Alumnae Williams and Jankovic to Face-Off at Sony Ericsson Open Finals

BRADENTON, FL -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 04/04/08 -- Serena Williams and Jelena Jankovic, both of whom have trained extensively at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy (NBTA), will face off against each other in the final round of the Sony Ericsson Open. The match will take place on Saturday April 5th in Crandon Park, at noon.

The Serbian-born Jankovic first traveled to Florida at the age of twelve to begin her training at the NBTA. 2007 was a breakthrough year for Jankovic, having advanced to the semifinals in the French Open, the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open, and the semi-finals of the Australian Open.

Serena Williams (an IMG client), defending champion of the Sony Ericsson Open (an IMG owned tournament) and South Florida native, comes into this tournament as a number 8 seed. Jankovic and Williams last faced off in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, with Jankovic leading the all-time series at 3-2.

Nick Bollettieri stated, "Jankovic is 3-2 against Williams, including a victory over her earlier this year at the Australian Open. This match features two of the best athletes on the WTA Tour. Jankovic's movement is second to none, she is extremely confident from the baseline, and will not hesitate to come into the net and put away a sound volley. Williams' physical conditioning has helped her tremendously in the previous rounds. Without being as fit as she is, she wouldn't have been able to get to the finals. It has also allowed her to be more patient and this has been a big key for her as well. Finally, both girls play fantastic defense, and are able to run down shots that looked like clear winners."

"Williams stumbled out of the starting gates a bit against Svetlana Kuznetsova, but like a Kentucky Derby horse making a backstretch run, she regained her form and came back to defeat her in three sets. If Williams can win this title it will be the fifth time she has done so, and the second in a row. That would be quite an astounding feat!" Bollettieri continued.

The Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy is unique to the world of tennis training. Nick himself has trained and coached nine #1 ranked professionals. It's a testament to the success of the IMGA training methodology that both women in the finals of the 2008 Sony Ericsson are NBTA Alumnae.

The IMG Academies have grown incredibly over the years; over eight hundred full-time academy students from over sixty different countries train there annually. Thousands more juniors, adults, and professionals train there on a weekly basis during the year. The Academies started with the NBTA in 1978. It now offers golf, baseball, performance, basketball, soccer and swimming programs as well.

For more information, please contact Priscilla Kuehnel at 941.752.2604 or by e-mail at Priscilla.Kuehnel@imgworld.com.

About IMG Academies

IMG Academies, a division of IMG, is the world's largest and most successful multi-sport, training and education camp/academy business. Spread out over 300 acres in Bradenton, Florida, the IMG Academies complex encompasses the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, the David Leadbetter Golf Academy, The Baseball, Basketball, Soccer, and Swimming Academies, International Performance Institute, The Pendleton School, University of Miami, The Wellness Spa, Academy Realty, and the IMG Academies Golf and Country Club.

More information about IMG Academies is available at www.imgacademies.com.

Contact: Priscilla Kuehnel 941.752.2604 Priscilla.Kuehnel@imgworld.com

2008-04-04 15:30:27 0328623 MARKETWIRE