Harkleroad gets back on radar screen

Five years ago, Ashley Harkleroad captured Charleston as few tennis players have.

Little known, and just 17 years old at the time, Harkleroad was the belle of the Family Circle Cup until the Saturday semifinals. She was perky, pretty and a delight to watch.

But for most of the time since then, the girl affectionately known as Pebbles from her days of living in little Flintstone, Ga., has been in a different zone.

Then a couple of weeks ago, newspapers around the world flashed photos of Harkleroad. The 5-5 blonde practically carried the U.S. Fed Cup team on her back against Germany, while Lindsay Davenport's highly acclaimed comeback faltered.

Davenport fell to 129th-ranked Sabine Lisicki the first day, but Harkleroad won both of her singles matches in the competition in straight sets to spearhead the win over Germany. Fittingly, Harkleroad defeated Lisicki on the last day to clinch the victory.

Charleston fans would love to see Harkleroad repeat her 2003 Family Circle Cup performance, although she hasn't been announced as one of the early entries in the April 12-20 tournament.

Harkleroad's best tennis days, other than the San Diego Fed Cup, since leaving Charleston five years ago have been third-round appearances in the 2003 French Open and 2007 Australian Open. She came to Charleston in 2003 ranked 101st in the world, but upended three top 20 players before running into eventual champion Justine Henin in the semis. Harkleroad climbed to as high as No. 39 in June 2003 before starting a steady decline. Married to ATP Tour player Alex Bogomolov Jr. since 2004, she is back in the top 100 at No. 65.

What's up?

Where's Roger Federer? And what's up with Novak Djokovic?

Just as Djokovic makes the cover of Tennis Magazine being labeled as tennis' next great player, he loses to Gilles Simon in Thursday's second round at Marseille, France.

Djokovic played Davis Cup for Serbia recently despite missing practice all week while under the weather. The Serb ace reportedly wore only a T-shirt during a cold two-hour outdoor celebration back in Belgrade following his Australian Open championship.

After sitting out the opening singles matches against Russia before winning in doubles the second day, Djokovic retired against Nikolay Davydenko in the reverse singles as Serbia fell to the Russians.

Of course, Federer hasn't played since losing to Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open. Federer apparently will compete at Dubai the first week in March.

High school transfers

Boys' high school tennis is just a couple of weeks away, and you might not recognize some of the players on your school's team. Sophomore Elliott Sperr has transferred to Porter-Gaud from Bishop England, drastically reducing the time of his morning commutes from his home near the Porter-Gaud campus. But the Bishops picked up junior standout John Karle from Palmetto Christian Academy, where he played No. 1 on two SCISA Class A championship teams.

And with big brother Jeremiah Dye now playing tennis at Coker College, seventh-grader Zac Dye has decided to stay closer to home and play for the Berkeley Stags. The Dyes were two of the stars of Pinewood Prep's SCISA Class AAA state champs last spring.

Notes

FAMILY CIRCLE CUP CHARITY: The Family Circle Cup has selected the Center for Women for the third straight year as its official charity organization. The Center for Women will have a presence at the Family Circle Cup and hold promotions and events to help raise funds for the services it provides for women in the area.

CHALLENGER SET: The Lowcountry Junior Challenger is scheduled for March 7-9 at Charleston Tennis Center. The entry deadline is March 1. Registration is available at www.usta.com using ID number (704130708).

FLORENCE WINS AWARD: The Florence Tennis Association has been named the 2007 National Community Tennis Association of the Year by the USTA and will be honored next Saturday in Las Vegas during the annual USTA Community Tennis Development Workshop.

Reach James Beck at jdbeck@postandcourier.com or 937-5540.