document_title: 2012 Serena Williams tennis season

question_text: who did serena williams beat in the olympics

text: 2012 Serena Williams tennis season

text: Year in detail[edit]

text: Early hard court season and Australian Open[edit]

text: Brisbane International[edit]

text: Williams began her 2012 season at the Brisbane International where she defeated Chanelle Scheepers in the first round in straight sets. At the second round, she faced Bojana Jovanovski and served for the match when she twisted her left ankle. She eventually won the match breaking the Serbians serve in the tenth game. However, the next day, she withdrew in her quarterfinals match against Daniela Hantuchová due to the same injury.[3]

text: Australian Open[edit]

text: Williams then played the Australian Open where she was on a 14-match winning streak after winning the event in 2009 and 2010 but missing the 2011 edition. She was able to cruise pass the first three rounds. She beat Austrian Tamira Paszek in straight sets hitting 34 winners but also made 26 unforced error, in a first round match that started 30 minutes to 12 midnight.[4] At the second round, she defeated Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová winning the first set at love and breaking serve once and by doing so, she earned her 500th tour win.[5] She then cruise pass Hungarian Gréta Arn with a loss of only 2 games to make through the fourth round. The match ended with 2 double faults and 59 minutes.[6] At the fourth round, she suffered a surprising loss to Russian Ekaterina Makarova at the fourth match point of the Russian. At the time, Makarova was the lowest ranked player left in the draw. Williams hit 37 unforced errors and 7 double faults in 2 sets. The loss ended her 17 match winning streak at the Open.[7]

text: She originally was set to participate in mixed doubles partnering with Andy Roddick.[8] The team withdrew before their first round match due to Roddick's hamstring injury.[9]

text: Sony Ericsson Open[edit]

text: Coming into the Sony Ericsson Open, Williams was attempting to break the record she shares with Steffi Graf of 5 titles and 7 finals at the event. She was also returning after a two-year hiatus with the 2009 edition was the latest edition she participated in. As the tenth seed, she received a bye in the first round. In the second round, she faced China's Zhang Shuai and won easily with 6 aces.[10] She followed it up with a loss of only three games over Roberta Vinci.[11] In the fourth round, she faced Samantha Stosur. Avenging her loss at the final of the 2011 US Open, she beat the Australian in two tight sets, while also serving 20 aces in the win, the most aces she has served in a match.[12] Coming into her quarterfinals match-up against Caroline Wozniacki, she was the favorite as she had never lost to the Dane with a 3–0 record. However, she lost winning four games in both sets in an error-stricken match where she committed 34 winners and 36 unforced errors to Wozniacki's 12 winners and 13 unforced errors.[13]

text: Clay court season and French Open[edit]

text: Family Circle Cup[edit]

text: Williams started her clay season campaign at the Family Circle Cup, having not played on clay since the 2010 French Open. As the fifth seed, she received a bye in the first round. In the second round, she faced Elena Vesnina and won with a break lead in each set, closing out the match win her 11th ace.[14] In the next round, she faced New Zealand's Marina Erakovic and won with a double fault from Erakovic and with Serena winning 10 of the last 12 games.[15] In her quarterfinals match, her opponent, Sabine Lisicki, had to retire after twisting her left ankle at 3rd game.[16] In the semifinals, she faced Samantha Stosur whom just outlasted Venus Williams in her quarterfinals match. Williams dominated the match with a double breadstick win in just under an hour and breaking the Aussie five times.[17] In the final, she met Lucie Šafářová for her first title of 2012. Williams dominated the match winning the first 9 games before the Czech got a game to avoid a double bagel defeat, it was the only game the Czech won in the match. With the win, she remained undefeated against the Czech. This was Williams' 40th singles title, second on Charleston and only her fourth on clay.[18]

text: Mutua Madrid Open[edit]

text: Williams then played at the blue clay courts of the Mutua Madrid Open. In the first round she met Russian Elena Vesnina and won with 13 aces and 40 winners.[19] In the second round she faced another Russian in Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and swept pass the Russian with a straight sets victory.[20] She then faced Caroline Wozniacki. Having lost their last match-up at Miami, a sluggish start from Williams looked similar to Miami as Wozniacki won the first set easily losing only one game. However, Williams avenged her loss at Miami and got back, winning the next two sets with 43 winners.[21] In the quarterfinals she faced her third Russian opponent in the tournament, Maria Sharapova, with whom she had a 7–2 lead against Sharapova. Williams continued her streak with a victory and 11 aces.[22] In the semifinals she ended the run of Czech qualifier, Lucie Hradecká. The first set was a tight contest with Williams edging Hradecká in the tie-break. The second set was a contrast with Williams winning with a bagel.[23] In the final, she faced world no. 1, Victoria Azarenka, and dominated the match losing only four games in the victory. Williams hit 13 aces in the match and she also improved her record against Belorussian to 7–1. This was her 41st title putting her second in most titles among active players along with Kim Clijsters and behind her sister, Venus Williams, with 43. The win also moved her from 9th to 6th in the rankings.[24][25]

text: Internazionali BNL d'Italia[edit]

text:
Williams then played the Internazionali BNL d'Italia for her final preparation for the French Open.
In the first round, she faced Kazakhstan's Galina Voskoboeva for the first time and won with 24 winners in a late match that started at 10.30 PM.[26] In the next round, she faced a tough match-up in the form of Nadia Petrova where their last four meetings went to deciding set. Williams led their head-to-head 6–3, but Petrova won their last 2 meetings.[27] In the first set, the Russian edged it out winning it with a single break. In the second set being down triple break point on serve in the third game, Williams came back and took control of the match winning the final two sets.[28] In the third round she defeated Anabel Medina Garrigues in straight sets.[29] In the quarterfinals she faced Italian Flavia Pennetta but had an easy pass as Pennetta retired after being down 4–0, 40–0 on Williams serve due to a right wrist injury.[30] Heading into the semifinals Williams led her opponent Li Na 5–1. However, Williams was forced to withdraw with a lower back injury as a precaution heading into the French Open.[31][32]

text: French Open[edit]

text: Williams came to the French Open as the heavy favorite for the title. In the first round, the fifth seeded Williams was drawn against local player ranked 111th in the world, Virginie Razzano. She, surprisingly, lost to the Frenchwoman in three sets, marking the first time she lost in a grandslam opener in her career. Williams was two points away from victory nine times in the second set including leading 5–1 in the tiebreak. However, she failed to capitalize her chances and Razzano took the set and forced a third set to be played. Razzano quickly took control of the third set and, even though Williams managed to save seven match points, she fell to Razzano.[33]

text: Williams also returned to mixed doubles competition for the first time since the 1999 Australian Open. She played with Bob Bryan and was drawn against Gisela Dulko and Eduardo Schwank in the first round. The pair lost to the Argentinians in a third set match tie-break.[34]

text: Grass court season: Wimbledon Championships and the Olympics[edit]

text: Wimbledon Championships[edit]

text: Williams' came into the championships as a co-favorite with world no. 1 and top seed Maria Sharapova. Williams chose to come into the championships with no grass preparation.[35] In the first round, she faced Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová in No.2 Court, where older sister Venus fell the day before. After her first-round loss at the French Open, Williams looked nervous but still cruised through the first set, winning it with a double break. In the second set, she served for the match in the ninth game just to be broken, but she was able to break back in the next game to win.[36] Her next opponent was Melinda Czink of Hungary; the American breezed pass the Hungarian with 7 aces to take the first set in 19 minutes. The second set was tighter, but Williams prevailed, breaking in the ninth game and then serving it out to advanced to the third round against China's Zheng Jie.[37] Zheng kept toe-to-toe with Williams by holding her serve to force a tie-break, which Zheng won with the aid of a few errors from the American. However, Williams dominated the second set, winning it at two including winning the final 13 points of the set to force it to a decider. Both player kept their serve until the 4th game where Williams had to save 3 break points. The match went on serve until Williams broke in the 14th game and served it out. Williams also recorded 23 aces in the match, which was the most aces in a match by a female tennis player, breaking her own record of 20 aces which she set in her semifinal match against Elena Dementieva in Wimbledon 2009.[38][39] Her next opponent was the first woman ever to score a 'Golden Set' in a Grand Slam event in the Open Era, Wild Card Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan. Williams dominated the first set, taking the first five games before Shvedova took a game, Williams eventually won the set. However, Shvedova came back in the second set, breaking the Williams serve twice to take the second. The third set came on serve until the tenth game, where Williams' broke and served out for the match on her first match point.[40] In the quarterfinals, Williams faced defending champion Petra Kvitová. In the first set, Williams took the only break of the set at the sixth game and eventually took the set. The second set was tighter as Kvitová had set point at tenth game on the Williams serve; however, Williams saved it and broke in the next game to serve it out and advance to the semifinals.[41][42] In the semifinals, she faced 2012 Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka. Williams took care of the first set, winning it with a single break. In the second set, Williams broke early at the third game; however, the Belorussian broke back in the sixth game, as both players held serve to push the second set into a tie-break, which Williams won with her 24th ace in her second match point and first on her own serve. Williams broke her own record set in the third round of 23 aces. It was her fifth win in a row against Azarenka.[43] Williams' opponent in the final was first-time Slam finalist Agnieszka Radwańska. Williams dominated the first set, winning it, winning the first five games and closing it out in the seventh game. Williams led by a break against the Polish no. 3 seed before a rain-delay. In the resumption of the match, Radwańska took advantage of a sloppy Williams, coming back and winning the set. In the final and deciding set, Williams took the final five games to take the match. It was Williams' fifth Wimbledon singles title, tying her with sister Venus; this is also her 14th Slam singles title and her first since 2010 Wimbledon. She also recorded 102 aces in the entire tournament, the most of any men and women. After the win she moved to number 4 in rankings.[44] After she won the Wimbledon singles title, former world no. 1 John McEnroe described Williams as the greatest female player who has ever played the game.[45]

text: Serena Williams also played doubles with sister Venus. The sisters were playing in their first doubles tournament since Wimbledon 2010. In the first round, they cruised past Vesna Dolonc and Olga Savchuk. In the second round they faced the Russian pairing and 4th seeds Nadia Petrova and Maria Kirilenko; the Williams sisters lost the first, but came back to take the second. The match was postponed once and was suspended twice; the match continued 3 days after the completion of the first two sets; the Russians took a 4–2 lead, but the American broke back and won the match. Later that same day, they played Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sania Mirza and won. In their quarterfinal match, they faced compatriots Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears, dominating them by winning with a double breadstick. In the semifinals, they faced another American pairing, top seeds Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond; after losing the first set, they came back and dominated the next two. In the final they faced the Czech pairing and 2011 French Open champions Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká and won, claiming their fifth Wimbledon doubles and 13th slam as a team.[46]

text: London Olympics[edit]

text: Williams then came back to Wimbledon, one month after winning the title to represent the United States in the Olympics. In the first round she faced former number one Jelena Janković and won the match in just 61 minutes. She served 8 aces and did not face a single break point.[47] She then competed against Poland's Urszula Radwańska in the second round. Williams won the first set with a break, and won the second set with a single break. Williams served 8 aces and had 26 winners in her one-hour-and-13-minute victory.[48] Her third round match was a repeat of the 2010 Wimbledon Championships final, as she faced Vera Zvonareva. The American dominated the Russian as she won the first five games before the Russian won a game. Williams then won the last seven games to win the match in just 51 minutes.[49] In the quarterfinals, she faced former number one Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark. Williams dominated the proceedings winning the first eight games before the Dane stopped her fifteen-game winning streak and won the ninth game of the match. However, Wozniacki could not break Williams' serve and the American closed out the match in 77 minutes.[50] In the semifinals, she faced world number one Victoria Azarenka for the third time in 2012. Despite Azarenka's number one ranking, Williams dominated the match winning one and two and served 16 aces and did not face a single break point.[51] In the final she faced Russian Maria Sharapova for the gold medal. Williams dominated the match taking the first nine games in just 45 minutes before her Russian opponent won a game. Williams then took the next three games to win for her 8th consecutive win against Sharapova. Williams served ten aces and two double faults to Sharapova's one and five. Williams also hit 24 winners to 7 unforced errors compared to Sharapova's six winners, and ten unforced errors. This win gave Serena a Career Golden Slam in Singles, only the second woman to do so.[52]

text: Serena paired with sister Venus at the London Olympics in Women's Doubles, they are the defending champion from winning in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In the first round, they defeated the Romanian pairing of Sorana Cîrstea and Simona Halep. They then won their next matches against German 5th seeds Angelique Kerber and Sabine Lisicki and the second seeds Italians Roberta Vinci and Sara Errani. In the medal rounds they faced the Russian pairing of Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova who were the third seeds and won with a break lead in each set. In the final they defeated 4th seeds Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká of the Czech Republic at four in each set for the Gold Medal. This is the third Gold Medal in doubles for Serena and Venus making the sisters the only players to have won four gold medals in tennis. Venus won the Singles Gold Medal in 2000 in Sydney, Serena won the Singles Gold Medal in 2012 in London and they won the Doubles Gold Medals in 2000 in Sydney, 2008 in Beijing and 2012 in London. Serena has a Golden Slam in singles and doubles and is the only player with that distinction.[53]

text: US Open Series[edit]

text: Bank of the West Classic[edit]

text: Williams played Stanford directly after winning Wimbledon. Williams is coming in the tournament as the defending champion and top seed. She received a bye in the first round and faced American wild card Nicole Gibbs in the second round, despite looking sluggish due to jet-lag, the 14-time slam champion came through comfortably.[54] In the quarterfinals she faced Chanelle Scheepers, the first set Williams' broke the South African's serve three times, while being broken twice herself and took the set. The second set was a lot easier, Williams took it without losing a game.[55] She then faced Sorana Cîrstea, despite serving only 37% of first serves in, she routed the Romanian losing only 3 games.[56] In the final she faced Lucky Loser Coco Vandeweghe, the first lucky loser to reach the final in 5 years. This also the first All-American final since the WTA Tour Championships in 2009. Williams took an early break lead in the first set but struggled serving on the sun and fell down with Vandeweghe serving for the set and had a set point but Williams came back to win the set in the twelfth game. Williams took an early break in the 4th game of the second set with a double fault from Vandeweghe and took the set and the title.[57]

text: Western & Southern Open[edit]

text: After her Olympics victory, Williams then played at Cincinnati as her warm-up to the US Open. She received a bye into the second round, where she faced Greek player Eleni Daniilidou and won in straights despite making 44 unforced errors[58] She then faced Urszula Radwańska in the round of 16 and took the first set after breaking late in the set. The second set saw Williams down a double break until she took the next 6 games to book her quarterfinal spot.[59] In the quarterfinals she faced German Angelique Kerber, but lost at four in both sets after Kerber converted in her 3rd match point. This loss ended the American's third longest winning streak of 19 wins.[60]

text: US Open[edit]

text:
Williams came into the US Open trying to be the only third woman after Steffi Graf and sister Venus Williams to win Wimbledon-Olympics-US Open in the same year. She was the 4th seed in the event. In the first round she face compatriot Coco Vandeweghe and won in under an hour with Vandeweghe only managing to hold serve and break only once in the match.[61] She then faced María José Martínez Sánchez in the next round, Williams won the first set quite comfortably, however in the second set she fell down by an early break until she came back and won the set.[62]
In the third round she faced the woman who beat her in the fourth round of the Australian Open this year Ekaterina Makarova, the first set was toe-to-toe and was on serve until Williams broke in the tenth game of the first set to take it, the American then won the second set in a bagel.[63]
In the next round Williams faced Andrea Hlaváčková, and won without dropping a game, earning her first double bagel in the US Open. Williams hit 31 winners to only 7 unforced errors.[64] In the quarterfinals, she faced former number 1 Ana Ivanovic, where Williams saw her 23-game winning streak ended when Ivanovic won the 4th game of the first set. However, Williams cruised passed the Serbian winning the match in just 58 minutes.[65] In the semifinals, the 2012 French Open finalist Sara Errani was awaiting. Errani didn't take a game until the sixth game of the match, with Williams closing it out the set in the next game. In the second set, the American broke the Italian twice to serve it out and advance to the Final. Williams didn't face a single break point in the match.[66] In her sixth final, she faced world no. 1 and first time US Open finalist Victoria Azarenka. Williams lead their head-to-head 9–1. The first set saw the Serena Williams of the tournament and won the set with a double break by breaking the Azarenka serve. However, in the second set Azarenka broke in the very first game and took advantage winning the set. They then headed to the first 3-set women's final since 1995. Azarenka then took an early break advantage just to see Williams break right back. Azarenka however broke in the 7th game of the second set and held to serve for the title in the tenth game, but just to get broken. Azarenka then was serving to stay in the match at the twelfth game and was up 40–30 but got broken to hand the title to Williams. This is Williams' 4th US Open and 15th Slam.[67]

text: Serena Williams also played doubles with sister Venus. In the first two-round they faced the team of Lindsay Lee-Waters and Megan Moulton-Levy, and the team of 15th seeds Klaudia Jans-Ignacik and Kristina Mladenovic. They won against the two teams in the same scoreline. In the third round they faced 4th seeds Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova for the third time in the year. The Russian team gave the upset of the Women's doubles defeating the Williams Sisters.[68]

text: WTA Tour Championships[edit]

text: Williams' came into the WTA Championships with no warm-up events having withdrawn from the Asian Swing. Williams ended in the red group with Victoria Azarenka, Angelique Kerber and Li Na. She played the first match of the tournament facing Kerber, to whom she lost their last encounter. Williams took the first three-game then lead but was pegged back by the German by taking the next 3 games. Williams then broke Kerber to take the set. Williams then took the last 5 games of the match to take the second set and the match. Williams made 26 winners and 20 unforced errors in the match.[69][70] Her next opponent was China's Li. The match began with Williams breaking Li's serve. However Li was quick to strike back reeling off four games only to see Williams comeback to take four straight games herself. In the next four games the two traded breaks to send the set into a tie-breaker. Williams won it with ease. The second began by Li breaking WIlliams only to see Williams again reel off four games. The rest of the set went on serve until Williams closed out the match. Williams ended with 22 winners and 31 unforced errors in the match.[71][72] In her final Round Robin match it was a rematch of the 2012 US Open finals against Azarenka. The match began with seven straight holds of serve until Williams broke in the ninth game just to broken back but Williams broke again when Azarenka double-fauled to give away the set. Azarenka began the second by reeling of three straight games. However she was unable to hold on as Williams won four straight games herself. Williams broke Azarenka in the tenth game to take the match with a double-fault. Williams have now improved her record against Azarenka to 11–1 and advancing into semifinals as the Red Groups top player with a 3–0 match win record and without the loss of a set.[73] In the semifinals Williams' faced world no. 4 Agnieszka Radwańska. Williams reeled off an eight-game winning streak from the 4th game in the first set. Williams won the match and was accompanied by 39 winners.[74] In the final, Williams faced Maria Sharapova in a rematch of the 2004 WTA Tour Championships. The first set was close with Williams winning the set 6–4. Williams started the first set by breaking the Sharapova serve and then broke Sharapova again to win the match. Williams didn't face a single break points and made 40 winners – 14 unforced errors to Sharapova's 13 – 12 Williams also made 11 aces in the match. This is Williams' third Year-End title and is the oldest woman to hold win the title. This win also meant that she has won the most titles in the season with 7.[75]

text: Fed Cup[edit]

text: Williams' represented her team for their World Group II match against Belarus. This is the first time that Serena is playing Fed Cup since 2007. In her first rubber she faced Olga Govortsova and won in two sets.[76] In her second rubber she faced Anastasia Yakimova, she struggled in the first set, however Williams' came back winning the last two sets easily. This win secured the United States Fed Cup team a spot in the 2012 Fed Cup World Group Play-offs.[77] She then represented the US Fed Cup Team at the World Group Play-offs against Ukraine. This is the first time since 1999 that she represented Fed Cup outside of the United States. In both her rubbers she defeated Elina Svitolina and Lesia Tsurenko. With her teammates Christina McHale winning both her ties, and Liezel Huber and Sloane Stephens winning the doubles, the US Fed Cup team swept Ukraine 5–0 to advance to the 2013 Fed Cup World Group.[78][79]

text: All matches[edit]

text: Singles matches[edit]

text:
Tournament

Match

Round

Opponent

Rank

Result

Score

Brisbane International Brisbane, AustraliaWTA PremierHard, outdoor1–9 January 2012

601

1R

 Chanelle Scheepers

#38

Win

6–2, 6–3

602

2R

 Bojana Jovanovski

#76

Win

6–2, 6–4

–

QF

 Daniela Hantuchová

#24

Withdrew

N/A

Australian Open Melbourne, AustraliaGrand SlamHard, outdoor16–29 January 2012

603

1R

 Tamira Paszek

#45

Win

6–3, 6–2

604

2R

 Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová

#49

Win

6–0, 6–4

605

3R

 Gréta Arn

#92

Win

6–1, 6–1

606

4R

 Ekaterina Makarova

#56

Loss

2–6, 3–6

Fed Cup WG II: United States vs. Belarus   Massachusetts, United States  Fed Cup  Hard, indoor  February 4–5, 2012

607

–

 Olga Govortsova

#97

Win

7–5, 6–0

608

–

 Anastasiya Yakimova

#65

Win

5–7, 6–1, 6–1

Sony Ericsson Open Miami, United StatesWTA Premier MandatoryHard, outdoor19 March–1 April 2012

–

1R

Bye

609

2R

 Zhang Shuai

#171

Win

6–2, 6–3

610

3R

 Roberta Vinci

#21

Win

6–2, 6–1

611

4R

 Samantha Stosur

#5

Win

7–5, 6–3

612

QF

 Caroline Wozniacki

#6

Loss

4–6, 4–6

Family Circle Cup Charleston, United StatesWTA PremierClay (Green), outdoor2–8 April 2012

–

1R

Bye

613

2R

 Elena Vesnina

#56

Win

6–3, 6–4

614

3R

 Marina Erakovic

#45

Win

6–2, 6–2

615

QF

 Sabine Lisicki

#13

Win

4–1, Ret.

616

SF

 Samantha Stosur

#5

Win

6–1, 6–1

617

F

 Lucie Šafářová

#26

Win

6–0, 6–1

Fed Cup Play-offs: Ukraine vs. United States   Kharkiv, Ukraine  Fed Cup  Clay, outdoor  April 21–22, 2012

618

–

 Lesia Tsurenko

#110

Win

6–3, 6–2

619

–

 Elina Svitolina

#171

Win

6–2, 6–1

Mutua Madrid Open Madrid, SpainWTA Premier MandatoryClay, outdoor7–13 May 2012

620

1R

 Elena Vesnina

#68

Win

6–3, 6–1

621

2R

 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova

#24

Win

6–2, 6–1

622

3R

 Caroline Wozniacki

#6

Win

1–6, 6–3, 6–2

623

QF

 Maria Sharapova

#2

Win

6–1, 6–3

624

SF

 Lucie Hradecká

#105

Win

7–6(7–5), 6–0

625

F

 Victoria Azarenka

#1

Win

6–1, 6–3

Internazionali BNL d'Italia Rome, ItalyWTA Premier 5Clay, outdoor14–20 May 2012

626

1R

 Galina Voskoboeva

#46

Win

6–2, 6–3

627

2R

 Nadia Petrova

#30

Win

4–6, 6–2, 6–3

628

3R

 Anabel Medina Garrigues

#31

Win

6–3, 6–1

629

QF

 Flavia Pennetta

#21

Win

4–0, Ret

–

SF

 Li Na

#9

Withdrew

N/A

French Open Paris, FranceGrand SlamClay, outdoor28 May – 10 June 2012

630

1R

 Virginie Razzano

#111

Loss

6–4, 6–7(5–7), 3–6

Wimbledon Championships London, United KingdomGrand SlamGrass, outdoor25 June – 8 July 2012

631

1R

 Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová

#62

Win

6–2, 6–4

632

2R

 Melinda Czink

#98

Win

6–1, 6–4

633

3R

 Zheng Jie

#27

Win

6–7(5–7), 6–2, 9–7

634

4R

 Yaroslava Shvedova

#65

Win

6–1, 2–6, 7–5

635

QF

 Petra Kvitová

#4

Win

6–3, 7–5

636

SF

 Victoria Azarenka

#2

Win

6–3, 7–6(8–6)

637

F

 Agnieszka Radwańska

#3

Win

6–1, 5–7, 6–2

Bank of the West Classic Stanford, United StatesWTA PremierHard, outdoor9–15 July 2012

–

1R

Bye

638

2R

 Nicole Gibbs

#403

Win

6–2, 6–1

639

QF

 Chanelle Scheepers

#42

Win

6–4, 6–0

640

SF

 Sorana Cîrstea

#43

Win

6–1, 6–2

641

F

 Coco Vandeweghe

#120

Win

7–5, 6–3

2012 Summer Olympics London, United KingdomOlympic GamesGrass, outdoor27 July–5 August 2012

642

1R

 Jelena Janković

#18

Win

6–3, 6–1

643

2R

 Urszula Radwańska

#45

Win

6–2, 6–3

644

3R

 Vera Zvonareva

#13

Win

6–1, 6–0

645

QF

 Caroline Wozniacki

#8

Win

6–0, 6–3

646

SF

 Victoria Azarenka

#1

Win

6–1, 6–2

647

G

 Maria Sharapova

#3

Win

6–0, 6–1

Western & Southern Open Cincinnati, United StatesWTA Premier 5Hard, outdoor13–19 August 2012

–

1R

Bye

648

2R

 Eleni Daniilidou

#121

Win

6–3, 6–4

649

3R

 Urszula Radwańska

#46

Win

6–4, 6–3

650

QF

 Angelique Kerber

#7

Loss

4–6, 4–6

US Open New York City, United StatesGrand SlamHard, outdoor27 August – 9 September 2012

651

1R

 Coco Vandeweghe

#75

Win

6–1, 6–1

652

2R

 María José Martínez Sánchez

#108

Win

6–2, 6–4

653

3R

 Ekaterina Makarova

#42

Win

6–4, 6–0

654

4R

 Andrea Hlaváčková

#82

Win

6–0, 6–0

655

QF

 Ana Ivanovic

#13

Win

6–1, 6–3

656

SF

 Sara Errani

#10

Win

6–1, 6–2

657

F

 Victoria Azarenka

#1

Win

6–2, 2–6, 7–5

WTA Tour Championships Istanbul, TurkeyYear-End ChampionshipHard, indoor23 – 28 October 2012

658

RR

 Angelique Kerber

#5

Win

6–4, 6–1

659

RR

 Li Na

#8

Win

7–6(7–2), 6–3

660

RR

 Victoria Azarenka

#1

Win

6–4, 6–4

661

SF

 Agnieszka Radwańska

#4

Win

6–2, 6–1

662

F

 Maria Sharapova

#2

Win

6–4, 6–3

text: Doubles matches[edit]

text:
Tournament

Match

Round

Partner

Opponents

Rank

Result

Score

Wimbledon Championships London, United KingdomGrand SlamGrass, outdoor25 June – 8 July 2012

174

1R

 Venus Williams

 Vesna Dolonc Olga Savchuk

#119#92

Win

6–0, 6–3

175

2R

 Venus Williams

 Maria Kirilenko Nadia Petrova

#7#10

Win

3–6, 6–3, 9–7

176

3R

 Venus Williams

 Bethanie Mattek-Sands Sania Mirza

#53#12

Win

6–4, 6–3

177

QF

 Venus Williams

 Raquel Kops-Jones Abigail Spears

#24#25

Win

6–1, 6–1

178

SF

 Venus Williams

 Liezel Huber Lisa Raymond

#1#1

Win

2–6, 6–1, 6–2

179

F

 Venus Williams

 Andrea Hlaváčková Lucie Hradecká

#17#13

Win

7–5, 6–4

2012 Summer Olympics London, United KingdomOlympic GamesGrass, outdoor27 July–5 August 2012

180

1R

 Venus Williams

 Sorana Cîrstea Simona Halep

#115#163

Win

6–3, 6–2

181

2R

 Venus Williams

 Angelique Kerber  Sabine Lisicki

#213#131

Win

6–2, 7–5

182

QF

 Venus Williams

 Sara Errani  Roberta Vinci

#3#4

Win

6–1, 6–1

183

SF

 Venus Williams

 Maria Kirilenko   Nadia Petrova

#7#9

Win

7–5, 6–4

184

G

 Venus Williams

 Andrea Hlaváčková Lucie Hradecká

#12#8

Win

6–4, 6–4

US Open New York City, United StatesGrand SlamHard, outdoor27 August – 9 September 2012

185

1R

 Venus Williams

 Lindsay Lee-Waters Megan Moulton-Levy

#88#87

Win

6–4, 6–0

186

2R

 Venus Williams

 Klaudia Jans-Ignacik Kristina Mladenovic

#29#37

Win

6–4, 6–0

187

3R

 Venus Williams

 Maria Kirilenko Nadia Petrova

#11#7

Loss

1–6, 4–6

text: Mixed Doubles matches[edit]

text:
Tournament

Match

Round

Partner

Opponents

Rank

Result

Score

French Open Paris, FranceGrand SlamClay, outdoor28 May – 10 June 2012

24

1R

 Bob Bryan

 Gisela Dulko Eduardo Schwank

#14#25

Loss

5–7, 6–3, [6–10]

text: Tournament schedule[edit]

text: Singles schedule[edit]

text: Williams' 2012 singles tournament schedule is as follows:

text:
Date

Championship

Location

Category

Surface

Points

Outcome

2 January 2012–7 January 2012
Brisbane International
Brisbane (AUS)
WTA Premier
Hard
120
Quarterfinals Withdrew before against Daniela Hantuchová

16 January 2012–29 January 2012
Australian Open
Melbourne (AUS)
Grand Slam
Hard
280
Fourth Roundlost to Ekaterina Makarova, 2–6, 3–6

4 February 2012–5 February 2012
Fed Cup WG II: United States vs. Belarus
Massachusetts (USA)
Fed Cup
Hard (i)

 United States def.  Belarus, 5–0United States Advanced to 2012 WG Play-offs

19 March 2012–1 April 2012
Sony Ericsson Open
Miami (USA)
WTA Premier Mandatory
Hard
250
Quarterfinals lost to Caroline Wozniacki, 4–6, 4–6

2 April 2012–8 April 2012
Family Circle Cup
Charleston (USA)
WTA Premier
Clay (Green)
470
Winner defeated Lucie Šafářová, 6–0, 6–1

21 April 2012–22 April 2012
Fed Cup World Group Play-offs: Ukraine vs. United States
Kharkiv (UKR)
Fed Cup
Clay (Red)

 United States def.  Ukraine, 5–0United States Advanced to 2013 Fed Cup WG

7 May 2012–13 May 2012
Mutua Madrid Open
Madrid (ESP)
WTA Premier Mandatory
Clay (Blue)
1000
Winner defeated Victoria Azarenka, 6–1, 6–3

14 May 2012–20 May 2012
Internazionali BNL d'Italia
Rome (ITA)
WTA Premier 5
Clay (Red)
395
SemifinalsWithdrew before match against Li Na

28 May 2012–10 June 2012
French Open
Paris (FRA)
Grand Slam
Clay (Red)
5
First Round lost to Virginie Razzano, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 3–6

25 June 2012–8 July 2012
The Championships, Wimbledon
Wimbledon (GBR)
Grand Slam
Grass
2000
Winner defeated Agnieszka Radwańska, 6–1, 5–7, 6–2

9 July 2012–15 July 2012
Bank of the West Classic
Stanford (USA)
WTA Premier
Hard
470
Winner defeated Coco Vandeweghe, 7–5, 6–3

27 July 2012–5 August 2012
2012 Summer Olympics
London (GBR)
Olympic Games
Grass
685
Gold Medal defeated Maria Sharapova, 6–0, 6–1

13 August 2012–19 August 2012
Western & Southern Open
Cincinnati (USA)
WTA Premier 5
Hard
225
Quarterfinals lost to Angelique Kerber, 4–6, 4–6

27 August 2012–9 September 2012
US Open
New York (USA)
Grand Slam
Hard
2000
Winner defeated Victoria Azarenka, 6–2, 2–6, 7–5

1 October 2012–7 October 2012
China Open
Beijing (CHN)
WTA Premier Mandatory
Hard
0
Withdrew

23 October 2012–28 October 2012
WTA Tour Championships
Istanbul (TUR)
Year-End Championships
Hard (i)
1500
Winner defeated Maria Sharapova, 6–4, 6–3

Total year-end points

9400

text: Doubles schedule[edit]

text: Williams' 2012 doubles tournament schedule is as follows:

text:
Date

Championship

Location

Category

Partner

Surface

Points

Outcome

25 June 2012–8 July 2012
The Championships, Wimbledon
Wimbledon (GBR)
Grand Slam
 Venus Williams
Grass
2000
Winner defeated Hlaváčková/Hradecká, 7–5, 6–4

27 July 2012–5 August 2012
2012 Summer Olympics
London (GBR)
Olympic Games
 Venus Williams
Grass
–
Gold Medal defeated Hlaváčková/Hradecká, 6–4, 6–4

27 August 2012–9 September 2012
US Open
New York (USA)
Grand Slam
 Venus Williams
Hard
280
Third Round lost to Kirilenko/Petrova, 1–6, 4–6

Total year-end points

2280

text: Mixed Doubles schedule[edit]

text: Williams' 2012 mixed doubles tournament schedule is as follows:

text:
Date

Championship

Location

Category

Partner

Surface

Outcome

28 May 2012–10 June 2012
French Open
Paris (FRA)
Grand Slam
 Bob Bryan
Clay (Red)
First Round lost to Dulko/Schwank, 5–7, 6–3, [6–10]

text: Yearly records[edit]

text: Head-to-head matchups[edit]

text: Ordered by percentage of wins, as of WTA Tour Championships

text:
Victoria Azarenka 5–0
 Maria Sharapova 3–0
 Samantha Stosur 2–0
 Elena Vesnina 2–0
 Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová 2–0
 Chanelle Scheepers 2–0
 Agnieszka Radwańska 2–0
 Urszula Radwańska 2–0
 Coco Vandeweghe 2–0
 Caroline Wozniacki 2–1
 Bojana Jovanovski 1–0
 Tamira Paszek 1–0
 Gréta Arn 1–0
 Anastasia Yakimova 1–0
 Anabel Medina Garrigues 1–0

 Flavia Pennetta 1–0
 Roberta Vinci 1–0
 Marina Erakovic 1–0
 Sabine Lisicki 1–0
 Lucie Šafářová 1–0
 Lesya Tsurenko 1–0
 Elina Svitolina 1–0
 Nadia Petrova 1–0
 Olga Govortsova 1–0
 Zhang Shuai 1–0
 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 1–0
 Lucie Hradecká 1–0
 Galina Voskoboeva 1–0
 Melinda Czink 1–0
 Zheng Jie 1–0

 Yaroslava Shvedova 1–0
 Petra Kvitová 1–0
 Nicole Gibbs 1–0
 Sorana Cîrstea 1–0
 Jelena Janković 1–0
 Vera Zvonareva 1–0
 Eleni Daniilidou 1–0
 Ana Ivanovic 1–0
 Andrea Hlaváčková 1–0
 María José Martínez Sánchez 1–0
 Sara Errani 1–0
 Li Na 1–0
 Ekaterina Makarova 1–1
 Angelique Kerber 1–1
 Virginie Razzano 0–1

text: Finals[edit]

text: Singles: 7 (7–0)[edit]

text:
Legend

Grand Slam tournaments (2–0)

WTA Tour Championships (1–0)

Olympics Gold (1–0)

WTA Premier Mandatory (1–0)

WTA Premier (2–0)

Finals by surface

Hard (3–0)

Clay (2–0)

Grass (2–0)

Finals by venue

Outdoors (6–0)

Indoors (1–0)

text:
Outcome
No.
Date
Championship
Surface
Opponent in the final
Score in the final

Winner

40.

April 8, 2012

Charleston, United States (2)

Clay (Green)

 Lucie Šafářová

6–0, 6–1

Winner

41.

May 13, 2012

Madrid, Spain (1)

Clay (Blue)

 Victoria Azarenka

6–1, 6–3

Winner

42.

July 7, 2012

Wimbledon, London, U.K. (5)

Grass

 Agnieszka Radwańska

6–1, 5–7, 6–2

Winner

43.

July 15, 2012

Stanford, United States (2)

Hard

 Coco Vandeweghe

7–5, 6–3

Winner

44.

August 5, 2012

Summer Olympics (1)

Grass

 Maria Sharapova

6–0, 6–1

Winner

45.

September 9, 2012

US Open, New York, United States (4)

Hard

 Victoria Azarenka

6–2, 2–6, 7–5

Winner

46.

October 8, 2012

Istanbul, Turkey (3)

Hard (i)

 Maria Sharapova

6–4, 6–3

text: Doubles: 2 (2–0)[edit]

text:
Legend

Grand Slam tournaments (1–0)

Olympics Gold (1–0)

Finals by surface

Grass (2–0)

Finals by venue

Outdoors (2–0)

text:
Outcome
No.
Date
Championship
Surface
Partner
Opponent in the final
Score in the final

Winner

21.

July 7, 2012

Wimbledon, London, U.K. (5)

Grass

 Venus Williams

 Andrea Hlaváčková   Lucie Hradecká

7–5, 6–4

Winner

22.

August 5, 2012

Summer Olympics (3)

Grass

 Venus Williams

 Andrea Hlaváčková   Lucie Hradecká

6–4, 6–4

text: Earnings[edit]

text:
#
Event
Prize money
Year-to-date

1

Brisbane International
$16,000
$16,000

2

Australian Open
A$109,250
$131,423

3

Sony Ericsson Open
$79,000
$210,423

4

Family Circle Cup
$115,000
$325,423

5

Mutua Madrid Open
€631,000
$1,197,465

6

Internazionali BNL d'Italia
$70,175
$1,267,640

7

French Open
€18,000
$1,291,960

French Open (mixed doubles)
€1,750
$1,294,379

8

Wimbledon Championships
£1,150,000
$3,081,446

Wimbledon Championships (doubles)
£130,000
$3,283,458

9

Bank of the West Classic
$96,000
$3,379,458

10

2012 Summer Olympics
$0
$3,379,458

2012 Summer Olympics (doubles)
$0
$3,379,458

11

Western & Southern Open
$45,750
$3,425,208

12

US Open
$1,858,054
$5,283,262

US Open (doubles)
$12,713
$5,295,975

13

WTA Championships
$1,750,000
$7,045,975

$7,045,975

text: Figures in United States dollars (USD) unless noted.


document_title: Labia minora

question_text: what is the cleft between the labia minora

root

text: Labia minora

text: Structure and functioning[edit]

text: The labia minora extend from the clitoris obliquely downward, laterally, and backward on either side of the vulval vestibule, ending between the bottom of the vulval vestibule and the labia majora. The posterior ends (bottom) of the labia minora are usually joined across the middle line by a fold of skin, named the frenulum of labia minora or fourchette.

tag: p

text: On the front, each lip forks dividing into two portions surrounding the clitoris. The upper part of each lip passes above the clitoris to meet the upper part of the other lip—which will often be a little larger or smaller—forming a fold which overhangs the glans clitoridis (clitoral tip or head); this fold is named the clitoral hood. The lower part passes beneath the glans clitoridis and becomes united to its under surface, forming, with the inner lip of the opposite side, the frenulum clitoridis.

text: The clitoral hood, analogously to the foreskin of the penis in men and also termed, like the latter, by the Latin word prepuce, serves to cover most of the time the shaft and sometimes the glans (which is very sensitive to the touch) to protect the clitoris from mechanical irritation and from dryness. Yet the hood is movable and can slide during clitoral erection or be pulled upwards a little for greater exposure of the clitoris to sexual stimulation.

text: The frenulum (Latin for little bridle) is an elastic band of tissue attached by its one end to the clitoral shaft and glans and by its other end to the prepuce. It allows two-way shifting of the clitoral hood: firstly, it can extend to let the hood be moved upwards to expose the glans for stimulation or hygienic cleansing, and secondly, it contracts to pull the hood back to protect it.

text: Histology[edit]

text: On the opposed surfaces of the labia minora are numerous sebaceous glands not associated with hair follicles. They are lined by stratified squamous epithelium on those surfaces.[2][page needed]

text: Like the whole area of the vulval vestibule, the mucus secreted by those glands protects the labia from dryness and mechanical irritation.

text: Variation[edit]

text: Being thinner than the outer labia, the inner labia can be also more narrow than the former, or wider than labia majora, thus protruding in the pudendal cleft and making the term minora (Latin for smaller) essentially inapplicable in these cases.

text: The reception of wider and/or longer labia varies considerably between different people, with some men and women stressing the beauty of bigger labia while other women who have such ones complain of some discomfort either from mechanical irritation by their tighter clothes or from their own or their peers' negative attitude to the image of less compact female genitalia than is stereotypical for them.

text: They can also be smooth or frilled, the latter being more typical of longer or wider inner labia.

text: From 2003 to 2004, researchers from the Department of Gynaecology, Elizabeth Garret Anderson Hospital in London, measured the labia and other genital structures of 50 women from the age of 18 to 50, with a mean age of 35.6. The results were:[3]

text:
Measuring

Range

Mean [SD]

Clitoral length (mm)

5–35

19.1 [8.7]

Clitoral glans width (mm)

3–10

5.5 [1.7]

Clitoris to urethra (mm)

16–45

28.5 [7.1]

Labia majora length (cm)

7.0–12.0

9.3 [1.3]

Labia minora length (mm)

20–100

60.6 [17.2]

Labia minora width (mm)

5–60

21.8 [9.4]

Perineum length (mm)

15–55

31.3 [8.5]

Vaginal length (cm)

6.5–12.5

9.6 [1.5]

Tanner stage (n)

IV

4

Tanner stage (n)

V

46

Colour of genital areacompared with surrounding skin (n)

Same

9

Colour of genital areacompared with surrounding skin (n)

Darker

41

Rugosity of labia (n)

Smooth

14

Rugosity of labia (n)

Moderate

34

Rugosity of labia (n)

Marked

2

tag: table

text: Due to the frequent portrayal of the pudendal cleft without protrusion in art and pornography, there has been a rise in the popularity of labiaplasty, surgery to alter the labia - usually, to make them smaller.[4][5][6] On the other hand, there is an opposite movement of labia stretching. Its proponents stress the beauty of long labia and their positive role in sexual stimulation of both partners.

text: Labiaplasty is also sometimes sought by women who have asymmetrical labia minora to adjust the shape of the structures towards identical size.[citation needed]

text: Labia stretching has traditionally been practiced in some African nations.[citation needed]

text: Functioning[edit]

text: The inner lips serve to protect from mechanical irritation, dryness and infections the highly sensitive area of the vulval vestibule with vaginal and urethral openings in it between them. During vaginal sexual intercourse they may contribute to stimulation of the whole vestibule area, the clitoris and the vagina of the woman and the penis of her partner. Stimulation of the clitoris may occur through tension of the clitoral hood and its frenulum by inner labia pulling at them. During sexual arousal they are lubricated by the mucus secreted in the vagina and around it to make penetration painless and protect them from irritation.

text: As the female external urethral opening (meatus) is also situated between labia minora, they may play a role in guiding the stream of the urine during female urination.

text: Medical conditions[edit]

text: Being very sensitive by their structure to any irritation, and situated in the excretion area where traces of urine, vaginal discharge, smegma and even feces may be present, the inner lips may be susceptible to inflammatory infections of the vulva such as vulvitis.

text: The likelihood of inflammation may be reduced through appropriate regular hygienic cleansing of the whole vulval vestibule, using water and medically tested cleansing agents designed for female intimate areas. To avoid contamination of the vulva with fecal bacteria, it is recommended that the vulva is washed only from front to back, from mons pubis to the perineum and anus. Apart from water and special liquid cleansing agents (lotions), there are commercially available wet wipes for female intimate hygiene. Some women wipe the vulval vestibule dry with toilet tissue after urination to avoid irritation and infections from residual drops of the urine in the area.

text: However, incorrect choice of cleansing agents, or their incorrect application, may itself cause labial irritation and require medical attention. Over-vigorous rubbing of the labia of little girls while washing, combined with the lack of estrogen in their bodies, may lead to the mostly pediatric condition known as labial fusion. If fused labia prevent urination, urine may accumulate and cause pain and inflammation.

text: In adult females, irritation of the area may be caused by wearing too-tight underwear (especially where wider inner labia protrude in the pudendal cleft); while G-strings, which rub against the labia during body movements, may cause irritation or lead to infection from bacteria transferred from either the external environment or the anus.

text: Additional images[edit]

text:
Organs of the female reproductive system.

Outer anatomy of clitoris.

Labia minora. Deep dissection.

tag: ul


document_title: Judiciary of India

question_text: at present how many courts are functional in india

text: Judiciary of India

text: The Constitution and the Judiciary[edit]

text: The JUDICIARY interprets the Constitution as its final arbiter.[3] It is its duty as mandated by the Constitution, to be its watchdog, by calling for scrutiny any act of the legislature or the executive, who otherwise, are free to enact or implement these, from overstepping bounds set for them by the Constitution.[4] It acts like a guardian in protecting the fundamental rights of the people, as enshrined in the Constitution, from infringement by any organ of the state. It also balances the conflicting exercise of power between the centre and a state or among states, as assigned to them by the Constitution.

text: While pronouncing decisions under its constitutional mandate, it is expected to remain unaffected by pulls and pressures exerted by other branches of the state, citizens or interest groups. And crucially, independence of the judiciary has been held to be a basic feature of the Constitution,[5][6] and which being inalienable, has come to mean – that which cannot be taken away from it by any act or amendment by the legislature or the executive.[7] This independence shows up in the following manner: No minister, or even the executive collectively, can suggest any names for appointment as judges, to the President,[8][9] who ultimately decides on appointing them from a list of names recommended only by the collegium of the judiciary. Nor can judges of the Supreme Court or a High Court be removed from office once appointed, unless an overwhelming two-thirds of members of any of the Houses of the Parliament back the move, and only on grounds of proven misconduct or incapacity.[10][11] A person who has been a judge of a court is debarred from practicing in the jurisdiction of that court.

text: The constitution and hence judiciary need continued review to ensure they don't lose relevance, with the present and are kept in synch with the changing times. The judiciary, in India (and the world over) is making efforts to computerize and hence e-courts and e-judiciary but this will require a rethink and re-packaging of judiciary for maximum benefits from available judicial resources, i.e. judges, jury ... E-courts In India

text: Appointment[edit]

text: As per the govt, as held by the court in the Three Judges' Cases – (1982, 1993, 1998), a judge is appointed to the Supreme Court and the High Courts by the President of India from a list of names recommended by the collegium  — a closed group of the Chief Justice of India and the senior-most judges of the Supreme Court, for appointments to the Supreme Court, and they, together with the Chief Justice of a High Court and its senior-most judges, for appointments to that court. This has resulted in a Memorandum of Procedure being followed, for the appointments.

text: Judges used to be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Union Cabinet. After 1993, as held in the Second Judges' Case, the executive was given the power to reject a name recommended by the judiciary. However, according to some, the executive has not been diligent in using this power to reject the names of bad candidates recommended.[12][13][14]

text: The collegium system has come under a fair amount of criticism.[9] Presently, by a recent order in the Fourth Judges' Case,[15] the court has invited everyone,[16] including the public,[17][18] to suggest by mid-November 2015,[19] how to improve it, broadly along the lines of – setting up an eligibility criteria for appointments, a permanent secretariat to help the collegium sift through material on potential candidates, infusing more transparency into the selection process, grievance redressal and any other suggestion not in these four categories, like transfer of judges.[20]

text: Earlier, one recommendation by a collegium came to be challenged in court. The court held that who could become a judge was a matter of fact, and any person had a right to question it. But who should become a judge was a matter of opinion and could not be questioned. As long as an effective consultation took place within a collegium in arriving at that opinion, the content or material placed before it to form the opinion could not be called for scrutiny in a court.[21]

text: Courts[edit]

text: Supreme Court of India[edit]

text: The Supreme Court is the highest court of the country or nation , which is established by the Constitution. According to it, the Supreme Court is a federal court, guardian of the Constitution and the highest court of appeal. Articles 124 to 147 of the Constitution lay down the composition and jurisdiction of the Court. Primarily, it is an appellate court which takes up appeals against judgments of the High Courts of the states and territories. However, it also takes writ petitions in cases of serious human rights violations or any petition filed under Article 32 which is the right to constitutional remedies or if a case involves a serious issue that needs immediate resolution.[22] It had its inaugural sitting on 26 January 1950, the day India's constitution came into force,[23] and since then has delivered more than 24,000 reported judgements.

text: The Supreme Court comprises the Chief Justice and 30 other Judges.

text: The proceedings of the Supreme Court are conducted in English only. Supreme Court Rules, 1966 are framed under Article 145 of the Constitution to regulate the practice and procedure of the Supreme Court. The same is amended and presently governed by the Supreme Court Rules, 2013.(http://supremecourtofindia.nic.in/Supreme%20Court%20Rules,%202013.pdf)

text: High courts[edit]

text: There are 24 High Courts at the State level. Article 141 of the Constitution of India mandates that they are bound by the judgements and orders of the Supreme Court of India by precedence. These courts have jurisdiction over a state, a union territory or a group of states and union territories. Below the High Courts are a hierarchy of subordinate courts such as the civil courts, family courts, criminal courts and various other district courts. High courts are instituted as constitutional courts under Part VI, Chapter V, Article 214 of the Indian Constitution.

text: The High Courts are the principal civil courts of original jurisdiction in the state along with District Courts which are subordinate to the High courts. However, High courts exercise their original civil and criminal jurisdiction only if the courts subordinate to the high court in the state are not competent (not authorised by law) to try such matters for lack of pecuniary, territorial jurisdiction. High courts may also enjoy original jurisdiction in certain matters if so designated specifically in a state or Federal law. e.g.: Company law cases are instituted only in a high court.

text: However, primarily the work of most High Courts consists of Appeals from lower courts and writ petitions in terms of Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Writ Jurisdiction is also original jurisdiction of High Court. The precise territorial jurisdiction of each High Court varies

text: Judges in a high court are appointed by the President after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, Chief Justice of High Court and the governor of the state. The number of judges in a court is decided by dividing the average institution of main cases during the last five years by the national average, or the average rate of disposal of main cases per judge per year in that High Court, whichever is higher.[citation needed]

text: The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in the country, established on 2 July 1862, whereas the Allahabad High Court is the largest, having a sanctioned strength of judges at 160.

text: High courts which handle a large number of cases of a particular region, have permanent benches (or a branch of the court) established there. For litigants of remote regions, 'circuit benches' are set up, which work for those days in a month when judges visit.[24]

text: District courts[edit]

text: The District Courts of India are established by the State governments of India for every district or for one or more districts together taking into account the number of cases, population distribution in the district. They administer justice in India at a district level. These courts are under administrative control of the High Court of the State to which the district concerned belongs. The decisions of District court are subject to the appellate jurisdiction of the concerned High court.[25]

text: The district court is presided over by one District Judge appointed by the state Government. In addition to the district judge there may be number of Additional District Judges and Assistant District Judges depending on the workload. The Additional District Judge and the court presided have equivalent jurisdiction as the District Judge and his district court.[26] The district judge is also called "Metropolitan session judge" when he is presiding over a district court in a city which is designated "Metropolitan area" by the state Government.[27] The district court has appellate jurisdiction over all subordinate courts situated in the district on both civil and criminal matters. Subordinate courts, on the civil side (in ascending order) are, Junior Civil Judge Court, Principal Junior Civil Judge Court, Senior Civil Judge Court (also called sub-court). Subordinate courts, on the criminal side (in ascending order) are, Second Class Judicial Magistrate Court, First Class Judicial Magistrate Court, Chief Judicial Magistrate Court.In addition 'Family Courts" are established to deal with matrimonial disputes alone. The Principal judge of family court is equivalent to District Judge.

text: Subordinate courts[edit]

text: Subordinate courts are also known as village courts, Lok Adalat (people's court) or Nyaya panchayat (justice of the villages), compose a system of alternative dispute resolution.[28] They were recognized through the 1888 Madras Village Court Act, then developed (after 1935) in various provinces and (after 1947) Indian states.[28] The model from the Gujarat State (with a judge and two assessors) was used from the 1970s onwards.[28] In 1984 the Law Commission recommended to create Nyaya Panchayats in rural areas with laymen ("having educational attainments").[28] The 2008 Gram Nyayalayas Act had foreseen 5,000 mobile courts in the country for judging petty civil (property cases) and criminal (up to 2 years of prison) cases.[28] However, the Act has not been enforced properly, with only 151 functional Gram Nyayalayas in the country (as of May 2012) against a target of 5000 such courts.[29] The major reasons behind the non-enforcement includes financial constraints, reluctance of lawyers, police and other government officials.[29]

text: Issues[edit]

text: This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2012)

text: According to the World Bank, "although India's courts are notoriously inefficient, they at least comprise a functioning independent judiciary"[30] A functioning judiciary is the guarantor of fairness and a powerful weapon against corruption. But people's experiences fall far short of this ideal. Corruption in the judiciary goes beyond the bribing of judges. Court personnel are paid off to slow down or speed up a trial, or to make a complainant go away.

text: Citizens are often unaware of their rights, or resigned, after so many negative experiences, to their fate before an inefficient court.[31] Court efficiency is also crucial, as a serious backlog of cases creates opportunities for demanding unscheduled payments to fast-track a case.[32]

text: Indian Judiciary Issues have been depicted in several films, one of them being a 2015, Marathi film, Court.

text: I think the biggest challenge is exploiting the available resources in judiciary to be most effective – i.e. the high complexity cases getting the maximum and best judicial treatment and low priority matters the least judicial service, and since there is a drift towards e-judiciary, E-courts In India exploiting the power of computers and associated computing tools – logic, algorithm, trend analysis – to service these matters – in which patterns and repetition can be identified and hence can be solved by generically

text: Pendency of cases[edit]

text: Indian courts have millions of pending cases.[33] On an average about 20% of the sanctioned positions for judges are vacant, whereas the annual increase in pendency is less than 2%. If the vacancies were filled, pendencies would go down and make the justice system deliver efficiently.[34][35] Traffic challans, police challans and cheque bounce cases make up nearly half of all pending cases.[36][37]

text: In 2015, it was reported that there were close to 400 vacancies for judge's post in country's 24 high courts. Arrears in the Supreme Court have mounted to around 65,000. There are some 30 million cases in various courts. Budget allocation for judiciary is a miserly 0.2 per cent of the gross domestic product. The judge-population ratio is 10.5 to one million, which should be 50 to one million.[38]

text: The government has been the largest, single party litigating before the courts, and has kept adding cases to the over-burdened courts despite losing most, and then on losing, has relentlessly taken them to the next court,[39] much of this being avoidable, according to the Law Commission[40][41] The vast number of cases pending in the Supreme Court as well as the other lower courts has defeated the very purpose of the judicial system. For justice delayed, is in effect justice denied. Judiciary is no longer attracting the best legal talent because of disparity in the income of bright young lawyers and the emoluments of judicial officers. In order to attract persons of the right caliber to the judicial cadre, System must improve their service conditions, particularly of the trial court judges. In recent years scandals about lack of integrity have besmirched the reputation of the judiciary. The sub-ordinate judiciary works in appalling conditions. Any reform undertaken must be in its totality rather than in isolation.[42]

text: On 12 January 2012, a Supreme Court bench said that people's faith in judiciary was decreasing at an alarming rate, posing a grave threat to constitutional and democratic governance of the country. It acknowledged some of the serious problems of a large number of vacancies in trial courts, unwillingness of lawyers to become judges, and the failure of the apex judiciary in filling vacant HC judges posts.

text: It wanted to seek answers from the government on amicus curiae's suggestion that access to justice must be made a constitutional right and consequently the executive must provide necessary infrastructure for ensuring every citizen enjoyed this right. It also wanted the Government of India to detail the work being done by the National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms.[43][44][45]

text: Undertrials outnumber convicts in the prison population of Indian jails. There have been cases where ordinary citizens have been charged for espionage while overstaying their visa or straying across the international land or maritime boundary and languishing in prison for years due to the slow redressal process.[46]

text: To reduce pendency, 'Fast-track courts', 'Evening courts/Morning courts' were set up and have met with mixed success so far.[47][48] 'Mobile courts' are being set up to bring 'justice at the doorsteps'[49] of litigants of far-flung remote and backward rural areas.[50]

text: However, Lok Adalats an informal, alternative mechanism has been a phenomenal success in tackling pendency, especially in pre-litigation matters, settling fresh cases before they become full-blown disputes and enter the courts.[51][52][53]

text: According to a report released by Centre for Public Policy Research and British Deputy High Commission "here are a total of 16,884 commercial disputes pending in High Courts with original jurisdiction. Of these Madras High court tops with 5,865. With the number of commercial disputes growing rapidly, facilitating a seamless dispute resolution system through alternate means has become crucial."[54]

text: Judicial corruption[edit]

text: Corruption is rampant in India's court. According to Transparency International, judicial corruption in India is attributable to factors such as "delays in the disposal of cases, shortage of judges and complex procedures, all of which are exacerbated by a preponderance of new laws".[55] Most disturbing is the fact that corruption has reached the highest judicial forum i.e. Supreme Court of India. Some notable cases include:

text:
In April 2017 , A judicial Magistrate Debanjan Ghosh gave bail to an murder accused, and it is alleged that it is unusual unless huge money is involved.
In December 2009, legal activist and Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan stated in court, "out of the last 16 to 17 Chief Justices, half have been corrupt"[56][57] In November 2010, former Law Minister, Shanti Bhushan echoed Prashant Bhushan's claim.[58]
There have been allegations that judges with doubtful integrity were elevated within the higher judiciary and campaigns held for their impeachment.[59]
In November 2011, a former Supreme Court Justice Ruma Pal slammed the higher judiciary for what she called the seven sins. She listed the sins as:

Turning a blind eye to the injudicious conduct of a colleague
Hypocrisy – the complete distortion of the norm of judicial independence
Secrecy – the fact that no aspect of judicial conduct including the appointment of judges to the High and Supreme Court is transparent
Plagiarism and prolixity – meaning that very often SC judges lift whole passages from earlier decisions by their predecessors and do not acknowledge this – and use long-winded, verbose language
Self Arrogance – wherein the higher judiciary has claimed crass superiority and independence to mask their own indiscipline and transgression of norms and procedures
Professional arrogance – whereby judges do not do their homework and arrive at decisions of grave importance ignoring precedent or judicial principle
Nepotism – wherein favors are sought and dispensed by some judges for gratification of varying manner.[60]

In 2011, Soumitra Sen, former judge at the Calcutta High Court became the first judge in the India to be impeached by the Rajya Sabha for misappropriation of funds.[11]

tag: ol

text: Reform[edit]

text: E-Courts Mission Mode Project[edit]

text: The E-courts project was established in the year 2005.[61] According to the project, all the courts including taluk courts will get computerised. As per the project in 2008, all the District courts were initialised under the project. In 2010, all the District court were computerised. The entry of back log case has started. The IT department had one system officer and two system assistants in each court. They initiated the services in the Supreme Court in June 2011. The case lists and the judgements of most district courts are available in http://lobis.nic.in. in http://judis.nic.in is used to connect all High Courts and Supreme Court judgements and cause list. These websites are updated daily by a technical team. Now the establishment work is going on taluk courts.

text: The project also includes producing witnesses through video conferencing. Filing cases, proceedings, and all other details will be in computers. Each district court contains 1 system officer and 2 system assistants. This technical manpower is involved in training the staff, updating web sites.[citation needed]

text: Judicial Service Centre[edit]

text: This is a part of e-court project. The judicial service centres are available in all court campus. The Public as well as the advocates can walk in directly and ask for the case status, stage and next hearing dates. This service is provided for free.[citation needed]

text: History[edit]

text: Jury trial[edit]

text: The first jury trial decided by an English jury in India happened in Madras (now Chennai) in 1665, for which Ascentia Dawes (probably a British woman) was charged by a grand jury with the murder of her slave girl, and a petty jury, with six Englishmen and six Portuguese, found her not guilty.[28] With the development of the East India Company empire in India, the jury system was implemented inside a dual system of courts: In Presidency Towns (Calcutta, Madras, Bombay), there were Crown Courts and in criminal cases juries had to judge British and European people (as a privilege) and in some cases Indian people; and in the territories outside the Presidency Towns (called "moffussil"), there were Company Courts (composed with Company officials) without jury to judge most of the cases implying indigenous people.[28]

text: After the Crown Government of India (Raj) adopted the Indian Penal Code (1860) and the Indian Code of Criminal Procedure (1861, amended in 1872, 1882, 1898), the criminal jury was obligatory only in the High Courts of the Presidency Towns; elsewhere, it was optional and rarely used.[28] According sections 274 and 275 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the jury was composed from 3 (for smaller offences judged in session courts) to 9 (for severe offences judges in High Courts) men; and when the accused were British and European, at least half of the jurors had to be British and European men.[28]

text: The jury found no place in the 1950 Indian Constitution, and it was ignored in many Indian states.[28] The Law Commission recommended its abolition in 1958 in its 14th Report.[28] Jury trials were abolished in India by a very discrete process during the 1960s, finishing with the 1973 Code of Criminal Procedure, which is still in force today.[28]

text: Without any proper study comparing existing judicial systems and without any effort to improve the system, it was claimed that the 8:1 acquittal of Kawas Nanavati in K. M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra, which was overturned by higher courts on the grounds that the jury was misled by the presiding judge and were susceptible to media and public influence, was the reason.[62] A study by Elisabeth Kolsky argues that many "perverse verdicts" were delivered by white juries in trial of "European British subjects" charged with murder, assault, confinement of Indians.[28]


document_title: Cup Noodles

question_text: when did cup o noodles change to cup noodles

text: Cup Noodles

text: History[edit]

text: Instant noodles were invented in 1958 by Momofuku Ando, the Taiwanese-born founder of the Japanese food company Nissin. He used Chicken Ramen as the first instant ramen noodles.

text: In 1970, Nissin formed the subsidiary Nissin Foods (USA) Co. Inc, to sell instant noodles in the United States. Nissin recognized that the bowls traditionally used to package instant noodles in Asia were not common in the U.S, so they used the paper cup designed by Ron R. Matteson. In 1971, they introduced instant ramen packaged in a foam cup. The three original Cup O' Noodles flavors in the US were beef, chicken and shrimp. Pork flavor was added in 1976. In 1978, Nissin Foods offered more new varieties of Top Ramen and Cup O' Noodles. The product was known as Cup O' Noodles in the United States until 1993.[citation needed]

text: In 1998, Cup Noodles Hot Sauce Varieties introduced (Beef, Chicken, Pork and Shrimp).[1]

text: Today[edit]

text: Today, instant noodles in Japan are often sold in foam bowls, sometimes with plastic utensils. Foam bowls are inexpensive, disposable, light, and easy to hold, since they insulate heat well.

text: Different flavors are available in other parts of the world, such as tom yum in Thailand, curry in Japan, crab in Hong Kong, and Churrascaria in Brazil.[2]

text: In 2016 the US version was changed, reducing sodium and removing MSG and artificial flavors.[3]

text: In popular culture[edit]

text: From 1996 to 2006, a 60-foot (18 m) Nissin Cup Noodle sign was installed in Times Square, New York City. It was located prominently near the top of the One Times Square building, the location of the Times Square Ball drop on New Year's Eve. The sign was the most recent example in a tradition of steaming signs in Times Square, which started with an A&P 8 O'Clock Coffee cup in 1933.[4][5]

text: Cup noodles are often seen in the 2012 video game Binary Domain, which is set in a futuristic version of Tokyo. It is commonly seen in billboards and advertisements throughout the city, and is even seen being eaten by some characters.

text: Cup Noodles were prominently featured as product placement in the 2016 video game Final Fantasy XV. This partnership also resulted in a crossover TV ad in Japan.[6]

text: Cup Noodles have also been noted in the upcoming video game Star Citizen as a fictional product placement under the manufacture of a corporation known as "Big Benny's".

text: The popularity of Cup Noodles has also resulted in the creation of a Cup Noodle Museum. The museum features displays on cup noodles and their founder, Momofuku Ando. The museum is located in Yokohama, Japan.

text:
The Cup Noodles advertisement at One Times Square

Close-up of the Times Square advertisement. Note the actual steam rising from the cup.

My Cup Noodles Factory in Hong Kong International Airport SkyPlaza

text: Flavors[edit]

text: Flavors include: Beef, Chicken, Mushroom Chicken, Laksa, Chilli crab, Black pepper crab, Tom yam seafood, Spicy seafood, Seafood Curry, Kyushu White, Seafood, Thai basil chicken, Cream of chicken, Spicy Lime Shrimp, Hot and Spicy Shrimp, and Spicy Chicken.


document_title: Thomas Crapper

question_text: who invented the first flush toilet in 1500

text: Thomas Crapper

text: Company

text: Crapper was born in Thorne, South Yorkshire, in 1836; the exact date is unknown, but he was baptised on 28 September 1836. His father, Charles, was a sailor. In 1853 he was apprenticed to his brother George, who was a master plumber in Chelsea. After his apprenticeship and three years as a journeyman plumber, in 1861 Crapper set himself up as a sanitary engineer, with his own brass foundry and workshops in nearby Marlborough Road.[1]

text: The flushing toilet was invented by John Harington in 1596. Joseph Bramah of Yorkshire patented the first practical water closet in England in 1778. George Jennings in 1852 also took out a patent for the flush-out toilet.[4][5] In a time when bathroom fixtures were barely spoken of, Crapper heavily promoted sanitary plumbing and pioneered the concept of the bathroom fittings showroom.[citation needed]

text: In the 1880s, Prince Edward (later Edward VII) purchased his country seat of Sandringham House in Norfolk and asked Thomas Crapper & Co. to supply the plumbing, including thirty lavatories with cedarwood seats and enclosures, thus giving Crapper his first Royal Warrant. The firm received further warrants from Edward as king and from George V both as Prince of Wales and as king.

text: In 1904, Crapper retired, passing the firm to his nephew George and his business partner Robert Marr Wharam. Crapper lived at 12 Thornsett Road, Anerley, for the last six years of his life and died on 27 January 1910. He was buried in the nearby Elmers End Cemetery.[1]

text: In 1966 the company was sold  by then owner Robert G. Wharam (son of Robert Marr Wharam) on his retirement, to their rivals John Bolding & Sons. Bolding went into liquidation in 1969. The company fell out of use until it was acquired by Simon Kirby, a historian and collector of antique bathroom fittings, who relaunched the company in Stratford-upon-Avon, producing authentic reproductions of Crapper's original Victorian bathroom fittings.[6]

text: Most important and lasting achievements

text: As the first man to set up public showrooms for displaying sanitary ware, he became known as an advocate of sanitary plumbing, popularising the notion of installation inside peoples homes. He also helped refine and develop improvements to existing plumbing and sanitary fittings. As a part of his business he maintained a foundry and metal shop which enabled him to try out new designs and develop more efficient plumbing solutions.[7] He won a patent as the original inventor for using a "floating ball cock" as a part of a water closet arrangement. He invented improvements on existing water closets, and he owned the patent for the siphonic flush toilet. He invented the manhole cover enabling easy maintenance access. As well as various improvements to plumbing fittings, not least improvements to the developing the plumbing trap (U-bend). While it's true that Alexander Cummings invented an S-shaped trap (the S-bend) in 1775, it had reliability problems. Once invented (despite its simplicity and reliability) widespread use of it in sewage systems was slow to catch on; coming, only when the Great Stink of the Thames in 1858, forced  Parliament to pass laws in the 1860s for closed sewers to be installed. It would eventually be replaced by Crapper's improved bend trap in 1880. The new U-bend was a significant improvement on the "S" as it could not jam, and unlike the S-bend, it did not have a tendency to dry out, and did not need an overflow.[8] The BBC was to nominate the S-bend as one of the 50 Things That (have) Made the Modern Economy[9]

text: Siphonic flush toilet

text: Crapper held nine patents, three of them for water closet improvements such as the floating ballcock, but none was for the flush toilet itself.[10] Thomas Crapper's advertisements implied the siphonic flush was his invention; one having the text "Crapper's Valveless Water Waste Preventer (Patent #4,990) One movable part only", but patent 4990 (for a minor improvement to the water waste preventer) was not his, but that of Albert Giblin in 1898.[11][12] Crapper's nephew, George, did improve the siphon mechanism by which the water flow is started. A patent for this development was awarded in 1897.[13]

text: Origin of the word "crap"

text: It has often been claimed in popular culture that the slang term for human bodily waste, crap, originated with Thomas Crapper because of his association with lavatories. A common version of this story is that American servicemen stationed in England during World War I saw his name on cisterns and used it as army slang, i.e. "I'm going to the crapper".[14]

text: The word crap is actually of Middle English origin and predates its application to bodily waste. Its most likely etymological origin is a combination of two older words, the Dutch krappen: to pluck off, cut off, or separate; and the Old French crappe: siftings, waste or rejected matter (from the medieval Latin crappa, chaff).[14] In English, it was used to refer to chaff, and also to weeds or other rubbish. Its first application to bodily waste, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, appeared in 1846 under a reference to a crapping ken, or a privy, where ken means a house.[14]