On Their Games Again

It sure seems like it's been a while since this weekend's champions have held a trophy over their heads -- for some it's been just a month or so, for others several years, but if any of them can keep their momentum going, it could mean big things for the rest of their years.

Stan Wawrinka began the 2015 season almost the way he did the last one, picking up another crown in Chennai and rolling through his first couple matches at the Australian Open. But when he fell short of repeating his title run, he took a few steps back down the rankings. He was the fourth seed last week in Rotterdam and had trouble getting his footing, losing sets to wildcard Jesse Huta Galung and Guillermo Garcia Lopez, ultimately reaching the final by the skin of his teeth. Against defending champion Tomas Berdych on Sunday he was tested again, dropping the opening set, but he was able to rally from the deficit and clinched the win in just under two hours. It may not be as high profile a trophy as the one he gave up, but with two top ten wins this week, both over higher seeds, he might have put himself back on track to go after the big ones again.

After a similarly stunning 2014, Andrea Petkovic has had a little big more trouble getting her footing this year. A semifinalist at Roland Garros she finished off the season with a title at the Tournament of Champions, but went oh-and-three to start 2015, losing each time to players outside the top fifty. She started to get things back together during Fed Cup play, though, avenging a loss to Jarmila Gajdosova in Sydney and knocking out Sam Stosur in a 12-10 third set marathon. She continued her win streak in Antwerp last week, drubbing one-time Aussie runner-up Dominika Cibulkova and following it up with a win over always tricky Barbora Zahlavova Strycova to make the final. She was spared a contest on Sunday, though, when fifth seeded Carla Suarez Navarro pulled out of the match with a neck injury, but Petko's run was nonetheless impressive. She'll get right back to work this week in Dubai, and hopefully she'll keep her run going -- just a hair away from her career high ranking from three years ago, it's starting to feel like she can make a big push even higher this time around.

Kei Nishikori is certainly making a case for himself to keep climbing as well. Currently at his peak #5 in the world, the man from Japan is coming off a year that brought him four trophies, ten top-ten victories and his first Grand Slam final. He hasn't had bad results in 2015 by any means, but the semis in Brisbane and the quarterfinals in Melbourne don't seem quite as impressive now that we've seen what he can do. So this past week in Memphis, the two-time defending champion was under a little pressure. Qualifiers Ryan Harrison and Austin Krajicek both took sets off the top seed and even a reinvigorated Sam Querrey, who'd scored an impressive win over John Isner in the quarters, was able to push him to a decider. But Kei got his groove back in the final against big-serving Kevin Anderson, withstanding twelve aces from the South African to nab his third consecutive title in Tennessee in straight sets. And hopefully he'll be able to raise his game again when he faces even tougher opponents down the road.

Uruguay's Pablo Cuevas has already proven he can turn up the heat when the pressure's on. The twenty-nine year old veteran had never cracked the top forty before last year, but then went on a solid run over the summer picking up titles in Umag and Bastad, the first two finals he'd ever contested. He finished off the season with a couple of Challengers wins and ended the year at a career high #32 in the world. After a slow start to the year though -- his only win in January came over a still-recovering Nicolas Almagro -- he pulled things together this past week in Sao Paulo. Seeded fifth at the Brazil Open, he took out the Spaniard again and added wins over upstart Jiri Vesely and world #31 Santiago Giraldo to his resum&eactue;. Yesterday against unknown qualifier Luca Vanni -- who incidentally jumped forty-one spots up the rankings thanks to his Cinderella run -- he held tough in three tight sets, notching the win in a tiebreak and keeping his record in finals a spotless 3-0. He's headed straight to Rio this week and face Almagro yet again in his opener, but having backed up his most recent win with an ultimate title, he may just have established himself as a real favorite this time.

Veteran Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova is trying to work her way back to that favored status, too. The one-time world #4 has had a rough couple of years, and in 2014 fell well out of seeding territory at the Majors. She showed some signs of progress to start this season, scoring a win over Sara Errani in Auckland and pushing Garbiñe Muguruza to a third set in Melbourne. Still almost two years removed from her last title, she was nevertheless a long shot in her return to Pattaya City. But after upsetting third seed Zarina Diyas in her opener, the 2012 champion in Thailand didn't look back again. After dropping the first set in Sunday's final to Croatian Ajla Tomljanovic, Dani's experience came through and she was able to power through for her seventh career title and first since 2013. She seems to have recovered well enough -- earlier today she won her first match in Dubai with a win over Mona Barthel in three long sets -- but she'll face an even bigger challenge from Simona Halep in the next round. But a strong performance could work wonders for her confidence -- back in the top fifty now there's no reason she can't make another move higher.

We may have a few weeks left before then next big events of the season get underway, but all of this weekend's champions have put themselves back on the radar as we head to the American hard court season. And now that they've shown they've still got some spunk left in them, there's no telling what they'll be able to do.

Veterans' Days

Over the past several years we've seen this sport transform from one dominated by youngsters to one where the over-thirty crowd can not only survive, but actually thrive. And this week in particular some older players are not only proving they're still relevant, but a couple might finally be coming into their own.

We've talked already about how Sam Groth is coming into his own so late in his career, and he really has been able to follow up early in the year. The twenty-seven year old Australian lost a squeaker to Milos Raonic in the Brisbane quarterfinals to start the year and went on to win his first matches at his homeland's Major a few weeks after that. He's still got a lot of work ahead of him though -- pro since 2006, he's only just reached his career high ranking of #70 in the world. But he certainly has a chance to improve things -- he'll take on another big server in Kevin Anderson tonight in his Memphis second round and an upset of the second seed could give him a boatload of confidence the rest of the week. With players like big John Isner and U.S. Open finalist Kei Nishikori still in the field, he's going to need it.

There are other veterans on the rise this week, but many of them are climbing back after recent time outs. Nicolas Almagro missed much of last year with a foot injury and has had some trouble getting his footing back in 2015. He lost his opener in Sydney to last season's standout Pablo Cuevas and then couldn't do much damage at all to Nishikori in Melbourne. At #82 in the world now, the Spaniard's at his lowest ranking in almost nine years. He might finally be back on track now though -- after a straight set win over little-known Blaz Rola on Monday in Sao Paulo, he stunned top seeded Tommy Robredo last night, reaching his first quarterfinal since last spring. He'll get a rematch with Cuevas for a spot in the semis, but on a surface where he's much more comfortable, he might just be able to turn the tables in his favor this time.

Francesca Schiavone has been doing the same at the resurrected tournament in Antwerp. The one-time Grand Slam champion has struggled in her early thirties, losing in the first round of all but one of the last ten Majors she's played. Now ranked #81 in the world, she was winless this year before playing qualifying rounds in Belgium, but powered through rising star Oceane Dodin on her way into the main draw at the Diamond Games. She opened her campaign with an easy win over Klara Koukalova and earlier today trounced second seed Angelique Kerber in under an hour, dropping just two games to the top-ten German. The road gets tougher from here of course -- she'll take on Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarters -- but the fifth seed has already survived two three-set matches this week and the much more experienced Italian might have what it takes to score another upset.

Down in Pattaya City a couple more much-decorated vets are jumping back into the spotlight. Vera Zvonareva and Daniela Hantuchova, who combined to win the first three titles contested in Thailand, had fallen off the map over the last few year. Dani, injured or ill for much of the last two years finished 2014 at her lowest ranking of the century, while the Russian, who skipped an entire season after shoulder surgery, has struggled to regain her top form since her return. But both players have pulled off wins over low seeds this week -- Vera taking out China's Shuai Zhang and the Slovakian upending a talented Zarina Diyas. With only one seed left in the draw, either one of these comeback stories could keep going quite a while longer.

But perhaps the real story of this season has been the rapid ascent of thirty-one year old Gilles Muller who'd never before this year cracked the top forty. The Luxembourger, one of just two men from his country ranked in the top thousand -- the other is #781 in the world, reached the semis in Sydney, took out both John Isner and Roberto Bautista Agut at the Australian Open and began his run in Rotterdam with a tight win over comeback kid David Goffin. Last night he stunned Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets, notching his biggest win since taking out then-#10 Richard Gasquet nearly two years ago. Of course, with a likely meeting against Stan Wawrinka in the quarters, he'll have to raise his game even higher from here. But it sure looks like all the time he spent slugging away on the Challengers' Tour has paid off, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him keep his momentum going.

With thirty-four year old Victor Estrella Burgos's historic win in Quito last weekend, maybe we shouldn't be surprised to see players like these only just beginning to blossom. Hopefully, whether they're on the rebound or just peaking, they'll be able to keep up for months and years to come. After all, there's no reason that just the young guns should have all the fun.

The Rebound

It can be tough to muster up energy after a Grand Slam, especially if you didn't put up the performance you were hoping you would. But a couple ladies this weekend found the physical and mental toughness to bounce back after Melbourne and eventually came away with trophies that were a long time coming.

It's hard to believe it had been almost four years since Ekaterina Makarova's first title in Eastbourne, given how her star has risen in the meantime. Though she beat Serena Williams at the Australian Open in 2012, cracked the top twenty a year ago and reached the quarters at two Majors last season, she hasn't been able to claim another crown -- heck, she's never even made another final since 2010. Coming off injury, she survived a first round scare Down Under, but bowed out with a surprisingly unimpressive 6-2, 6-0 loss to eventual champion Na Li a round earlier than in the past.

This past week she came to Pattaya City as the fourth seed in a field of ladies who'd under-performed in Melbourne -- she was only one of two who'd made it past the second round. But she regrouped better than her contemporaries, and while one after the other was eliminated, Makarova was able to fight through one tough match after another. She ultimately faced off against Karolina Pliskova, a woman who'd already taken out two seeds and an on-the-comeback Julia Goerges on her way to the final. The Czech started off this match strong, too, firing off six aces in the opening service game -- ten total for the match -- but Makarova was able to stay stronger. With the only break on her side of the scoreboard, the Russian closed out the match in a tight second set tiebreak, winning the second title of her career. But perhaps more importantly, she ended a reputation of being a spoiler who rarely got to reap the spoils, and something tells me there will be a lot more trophies coming her way.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has claimed a couple more titles during her young career, but since peaking at #13 in the world over two years ago, her profile has fallen a bit. She hasn't gotten past the third round of any Slam since 2011, and though she played in four finals last year, her two crowns came at second tier tournaments. This year she'd retired from her second round in Brisbane, lost an opener in Hobart, and after taking the first set from Aga Radwanska at the Aussie Open, she struggled under pressure and ultimately went home in the first week again.

Pavs wasn't even seeded when she arrived in Paris last week -- four top ten players were originally entered in the draw -- and she was challenged from the start. The young Russian endured five three set matches during the week, fighting back from a set down against former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone, ninth-ranked Angelique Kerber, and top seed Maria Sharapova. She lost her opener against Sara Errani in the final too -- after building a 3-1 lead, she lost seven games in a row. She turned the tables, though, winning a stretch of her own, but got down in the decider too. Pavlyuchenkova soldiered up then and remained tougher in the clutch -- after nearly two hours on court, bringing her total for the week to almost ten and a half, she'd secured the biggest trophy of her career and put herself back in the mix against the biggest names in the sport.

With their wins this weekend these ladies might have put themselves in a position to make a play for even bigger success down the road. And what better way to erase some slightly sour memories from their time in Melbourne than by coming back bigger, stronger, and ready for new heights.

A Quest for Redemption

It's been a pretty exciting first month of the season, but the New Year hasn't been happy for everyone. A couple players have struggled to put up the kinds of results we've come to expect from them, but some solid results this week could turn all that around.

It's been a long time since Anastasija Sevastova has done anything big on the tennis court, and the 2010 Estoril champion has fallen well down the rankings over the last few years. After making the fourth round in Melbourne two years ago, she failed to make it past her opener there this time around and had to qualify for the main draw in Pattaya City. She sneaked out a win over rising star Heather Watson on Thursday to make her first quarterfinal since Luxembourg in 2011. She's got nothing but seeds left in her half of the draw, so it won't be easy for her to progress farther, but if the young Latvian can find her game there's no reason to believe she can't get in another win or two.

Elena Vesnina may have something to say about that though -- the decorated doubles star is having quite the season so far. Long a member of the middle tier in this sport, the Russian had lost all six of the finals she'd contested before this year, but changed her luck in Hobart early in the month and then beat Varvara Lepchenko and Roberta Vinci on her way to the Australian Open fourth round. The run helped her climb to #33 in the world, still off a career high, but with some of the most consistent results we've seen from her in a while. Vesnina hasn't faced another seeded player so far in Thailand, but could be tested tomorrow by world #15 Maria Kirilenko in the quarters. Her compatriot has won all three of their previous meetings, but Vesnina has kept things close in the past -- if she can harness her momentum it might bode well for her the rest of this week.

Sabine Lisicki has actually fallen below Vesnina in the rankings -- surprising, considering this time last year we were waiting for her to finally break the top ten. But a string of injuries and disappointing results, including a first round loss in Melbourne, pushed her out of the top fifty. She's still seeded fifth in Pattaya, though, and with fairly routine wins over her first two opponents this week it looks like she might be ready to stage a comeback. It should be smooth sailing for her, too -- the highest ranked player left in her half is world #60 Ayumi Morita -- so if she stays focused and healthy this could be her chance to make a move.

There are plenty players looking to relaunch their careers over in Paris as well. Lucie Safarova is just a hair off her career high ranking, but with her only win of the year coming over a sub-hundred player, it seems she's lost a little of that luster. She's struggled so far this week too, dropping sets to both Lourdes Dominguez Lino and Alize Cornet, but now in the quarters she has a chance to shine. She next faces Lucky Loser Kiki Bertens, one of last year's hottest newcomers who's already beaten a tough Tamira Paszek and fourth-seeded Dominika Cibulkova at the GDF Suez. Bertens actually won the pair's only other meeting last year at Wimbledon, so the Czech is going to have to bring her A-Game if she wants to turn the tables on her opponent. But if she does, it could do wonders for her confidence the rest of the year.

Marion Bartoli hasn't really fallen too far out of the spotlight, but after just missing her chance to qualify for Istanbul last year, she hasn't beaten a player in the top fifty yet this season -- she suffered an easy defeat in the quarters at the hands of Shenzhen finalist Klara Zakopalova to start the year and then lost a struggle to Melbourne Cinderella Ekaterina Makarova a few weeks later. So far in her homeland, the Frenchwoman's been on point -- after a tight first set, she rolled over Christina McHale to set up a third round against Hobart finalist Mona Barthel. The German beat Bartoli last April in Stuttgart, pretty easily in fact, so the on-paper favorite cannot let history get in her way -- if she's able to play her game, there's no reason she can't avenge that loss.

Petra Kvitova may have a bit more to prove. The one-time Wimbledon champion has been a fixture in the top ten for the past eighteen months or so, but last year she had been a stone's throw from grabbing the #1 spot. That goal is a bit further away these days, and after putting together a 2-3 record to start the season, it may have gotten a little more remote. The 2011 winner in Paris could have a tough time reclaiming the title -- she was challenged somewhat in her opener by Stefanie Voegele, and will meet quickly rising Kristina Mladenovic next. The Czech has won the pair's only previous meeting, at this event actually, but that was a full five years ago, and her opponent has posted some solid results herself, besting both Julia Goerges and Yanina Wickmayer on her way to the quarters. If Kvitova is going to make another play for this crown -- and turn her year around -- she'll need to keep her cool in tomorrow's match and play ball like she hasn't played yet this season.

It's not really fair to say Sara Errani hasn't followed up on her breakout season from 2012 -- but despite winning the doubles title in Melbourne she nevertheless dropped a chunk of ranking points after losing in the first round of the Australian Open singles draw. She's the top seed in Paris this week, though, so will want to step up her game and with a quarterfinal match against the woman who ousted her two weeks ago, the pressure will be on. Carla Suarrez Navarro holds a dead-even 3-3 record against the Italian, and after her win Down Under and a victory over Klara Zakopalova here, she might have the confidence to take the lead. But Errani has been a fighter on all surfaces the past year, and if she's on her game should be able to stop the bleeding -- and that win could put her season back on the right track.

All these ladies have a chance to redeem themselves over the next few days -- some get that opportunity against the very same players who stopped them in their tracks. Whether they achieve their goals or not could have a big impact on what the rest of their seasons look like and whether or not momentum stays on their side. Their years may not have gotten off to the start they wanted, but their upcoming performances might just be what it takes to turn all that around.

The Payoff

It's hard to be patient.

That's true of life in general, of course, but also for players trying to make their mark on the professional tennis world. Some who peak early struggle to climb back to the heights they once were, while others spend years on Tour waiting for that breakthrough. But once they get there, the rewards are plenty.

Daniela Hantuchova peaked at #5 in the world back in 2003, the year after her first WTA title in Indian Wells, where she beat legends Justine Henin and Martina Hingis for the crown. She made three Slam quarterfinals in a row that year, and though she's fallen a bit down the rankings she's remained a fixture in the top thirty almost ever since. Her title tally hasn't reflected that, though -- she repeated in California in 2007, but when the year started she only had amassed four trophies, a little strange for someone who's been on the circuit for thirteen years now.

Things got a little better for Dani in 2012. Unseeded in Brisbane, she made her way to the final, thanks largely to a walkover from Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters' retirement, and followed it up by beating one-time French Open champ Francesca Schiavone to make the Sydney quarters. Her efforts didn't result in a trophy in either instance, but it was encouraging to see her hang in against the top stars.

And then she came back to Pattaya City, the site of her last title a year ago. The third seed this time around, Hantuchova didn't have much of a challenge early and only lost seven games in her first two rounds. And with second seeded Dominika Cibulkova eliminated in her opener, she had a clear shot to Sunday's championship.

Her opponent, Russia's Maria Kirilenko, had a tougher week. She had saved match point in her first match, came back from a break down in her second, and needed two-and-a-half hours to finish off her semi. She got off to a good start in the final, securing an early break and eventually winning the set in a tiebreak, but that's when her luck ran out. Hantuchova took the advantage in the second set and cruised in the third, securing her first career title defense in an three-plus hour match. And with her best start to a year since 2008, it's looking like she might have finally found her game again.

Twenty-four year old Angelique Kerber has been finding her game over the last six months or so. After winning just five Tour main draw matches in the first half of 2011, she made a surprising semifinal run in Dallas as a qualifier. She was still ranked just inside the top one hundred when she came to New York, but she beat Aggie Radwanska and Flavia Pennetta to make the semis at the U.S. Open. With wins over Sabine Lisicki and Julia Goerges in Auckland and the only German point against the Czechs in Fed Cup, she's now #27 in the world and was just granted a seed this week in Paris.

Kerber was dealt a tough draw from the start, but she got past Lucie Safarova and Monica Niculescu -- both ranked in Slam seeding territory -- to kick off her campaign. In the quarters she avenged her Australian Open loss to Maria Sharapova, taking advantage of all five opportunities she had to break the Russian's serve. She had a tougher time against Yanina Wickmayer in the semis, but after more than two hours on court Saturday, she advanced to her second career championship match.

There she met second seeded Marion Bartoli, playing in her sixth final over the last twelve months. The hometown girl had launched a few comebacks over the week, coming back against Roberta Vinci in the quarters after losing the first set and getting down breaks in the second and third. She almost did the same against Kerber on Sunday, drawing even after losing serve early in the first and eventually pushing the match to a decider after winning the second set 7-5. But Kerber got the better of her in the third, running off with the first four games, finally taking out her opponent for her first ever WTA crown. And the way she's playing, it sure looks like there will be more to come.

It's been a long time coming for both this weekend's winners -- longer for some than for others, of course. But these titles may help kick off an even more successful year than they've already had. And if they can keep up this momentum, their waits will be more than worth it.

Taking Back the Spotlight

Most of the talk this tennis season has centered around a few big stories -- Novak Djokovic reclaiming the title in Australia, Kim Clijsters returning to #1, the rise of a couple emerging talents who've found a way to prosper this year on the big stage. But amid all that hype, a few other players have chosen this past week to remind us that they're not ones to be forgotten quite yet.

Of course we can't ignore the great runs from Alexandr Dolgopolov and Milos Raonic, both of whom have followed up well on their performances in Melbourne. The Ukrainian didn't drop a set on the way to his first career final, but eventually dropped to veteran Nicolas Almagro in Costa Do Sauipe, while the transplanted Canadian continued to impress on his way to the championship match in San Jose.

Tonight he'll face defending titleist Fernando Verdasco, who claims the top seed, but hasn't had the most success in recent months. He went winless during his post-U.S. Open Asia circuit and took only two matches when he returned to Europe. Though he made the fourth round at the Australian, it was not without drama, as he found himself down two sets to love against Janko Tipsarevic in the second round.

But he's been near flawless at the SAP Open this year, surviving fourteen aces by big-serving Ivo Karlovic on Thursday and dismantling Denis Istomin in the quarters. Last night against former #4 Juan Martin Del Potro, he could have been tested -- maybe he was, dropping serve for the first and only time this week -- but he fired off one forehand after another to even his head-to-head against the big man. His experience on championship court may be enough for him tonight against Raonic -- the third serving specialist Verdasco will face this tournament -- but even if it isn't, he should take some comfort in knowing he's at least turned the tide back in his favor.

Daniela Hantuchova had also been having a pretty tough year, winning only one match at Fed Cup, but her struggles have persisted even longer than that -- she played her first final in three years last March in Monterrey, but hadn't won a title since Linz in 2007, not the kind of record you want to have as a top tier player.

But when she came to Pattaya City as the fourth seed, something must have switched in her. Against super-strong veteran Kimiko Date Krumm in the second round, she reversed a three-match losing streak and only dropped another two games to make the semis. That's where she had her biggest threat, world #3 and two-time defending champion Vera Zvonareva had won four of their past five meetings and was arguably playing the best tennis of her career. But Hantuchova, who has often shown signs of brilliance, finally proved it wasn't all an act. She stuck with her opponent through long rallies, found every angle, utilized beautiful drop shots and only lost serve once to make her eleventh career final after over two hours of play. After that ordeal, you might have thought the Slovak would be worn out, but she made relatively easy work of Sara Errani on Sunday, winning almost two-thirds of the points to claim the title.

Nineteen-year-old Petra Kvitova hasn't exactly been having a bad year -- she claimed a title in Brisbane, beat hometown favorite Sam Stosur on the way to the Melbourne quarters and went two-for-two in earning her Czech mates a first round Fed Cup win. Her efforts have earned her a career high #18 ranking, but her presence in Paris was nevertheless overshadowed by that of red-hot Kim Clijsters.

Kvitova didn't have the easiest road to her second final of the year. She faced match points against Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in the second round and survived a tense third-set tiebreak against Yanina Wickmayer in the quarters. But she struck first against Clijsters, breaking the world #1 in the opening game. She gave it right back, but strong serving -- ten aces to Kim's one -- aggressiveness on her return games, and some smart play in the clutch won her a third top-ten victory in the past twelve months.



So while most of us are preoccupied with the headlines, we shouldn't discount the performances all these guys and gals have given us over the past week or more. Hopefully they'll keep the momentum going -- we all know how the supporting cast so often steals the show, and the sport would be a lot less fun without them.

Deferred Compensation

It's a funny thing about tennis rankings -- like Wall Street bonuses, they don't always reflect how well a player is doing at a particular moment in time.

Those familiar with the system know players accumulate points at every tournament they enter on a fifty-two week rolling basis, earning more at larger events and the deeper they go into draws. Since the athletes retain credit for wins up to a year -- and are held accountable for long-ago losses -- they arguably get a sort of grace/waiting period before being paid for their most recent results.

That means a severe underdog can beat a heavy favorite at a given tournament, but if she happened to advance farther last time, even if via a much easier draw, she could lose ground despite improved play. Furthermore, as we've seen so often recently, a player can climb the ranks by entering events week after week, building himself insurance if he should be beaten early at the Majors.

Perhaps that irony is best represented in the ascent of Sam Querrey, currently a career high #17 in the world despite having won only one match since the U.S. Open -- and losing to players like Santiago Giraldo and Lucasz Kubot. This week in San Jose, the American boasted a #3 seed, but still couldn't get out the gates and fell in straight sets to Lukas Lacko, ranked out of the top hundred.

What's propping him up? Titles in Belgrade, Queen's Club and Los Angeles over the spring and summer have a few more months of shelf-life, but the five hundred points he earned fifty-one weeks ago in Memphis are about ready to walk out the door unless he ups his game fast. Otherwise, it sure looks like Sam is about to reap the pain of some sloppy recent play.

Vera Zvonareva is in a slightly different, but steadier, boat. Arguably coming off the best year of her career, making final appearances at her first two Slams, she actually doesn't have the hardware to back it up. The only trophy she won in 2010 was in Pattaya City, a smaller tournament in Thailand where she's defending this week, and if she doesn't make good on her top seeding she'll have no titles to show for all the progress she's made. But though her ranking may come into jeopardy later in the year, I feel she's got the potential for a strong spring and summer, and could come out swinging even harder when its time to defend her points.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, it looks like Kim Clijsters' patience and six months of hard work is about to be rewarded. The winner in New York, Doha and Melbourne has been inching her way back toward the #1 position -- a spot she last held before she ever won a Major trophy. But now she's one win away from reclaiming the spot from Caroline Wozniacki, and if she makes the semifinals in Paris this week we'll see current dominance finally reflected in the rankings.

At the end of the day, everything probably works out -- stale points eventually drop off and fresh ones get added on, allowing standings to represent where the strength in the sport is, and both the ATP and WTA championships use a calendar year race to determine their qualifiers. But maybe it's time to re-evaluate the system, give more weight to recent results, so that rankings are more reflective of the current environment.

After all, wouldn't we all be better served if only true merit was rewarded?