U.S. Open Preview

Well it's finally here -- the last Grand Slam of 2009 begins tomorrow, and the hardcourt action leading up to the U.S. Open has set the stage for what's sure to be an amazing tournament.

I may be a little biased -- as a (sort-of) native New Yorker, this is my home court, so of course I prefer this to other Majors. But whether it's the rowdy crowds, the bright lights of night matches, or the colorful characters both on and off the court, there's an energy in Flushing Meadows that's just not there in Wimbledon or even the French.



And this year's tournament promises not to disappoint. At the Taste of Tennis event in Manhattan Thursday night, emcee Hannah Storm of ESPN said:

"I think the men's side is going to be amazing. It's real deep, it's real competitive. Roger Federer, of course, going for his sixth U.S. Open title. On the women's side you have equally great tennis and players with tremendous histories here in New York."

It's a story of comebacks this summer -- Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters are all playing their first professional tennis in weeks, months, even years. But it's not only them -- Jelena Jankovic, Lleyton Hewitt and Juan Carlos Ferrero are all making a run back into the big leagues.

As always, it's going to be an exciting couple of weeks!

Men's Draw

Defending champion Federer is clearly the favorite in New York, as he aims to win his sixth straight title in New York and his sixteenth Major trophy. It would be the third year in which he's reached at least the final of every Grand Slam and the third time he's won three consecutive titles. And, as so many like to point out, it would be the first Major he's won as a father! Talk about a big year.

Roger's first round opponent will be the U.S.'s teen phenom, Devin Britton, a semifinalist in the boys' tournament at Wimbledon this year. Though that should be an easy match, Federer has a potential third round date with Hewitt and a possible quarterfinal match-up with Roland Garros runner-up Robin Soderling, a man who has said no one ever beats him ten eleven twelve times in a row. That should make the multiple record-holder shake in his boots.

Tournament officials might have done a little maneuvering to allay one of fans' biggest fears when they announced draws on Thursday. In the weeks leading up to the Open, so many had been focused on the fact that, for the first time in years, Federer and recent #1 Rafael Nadal could meet before the finals of a Major. When Rafa failed to recapture his #2 ranking in Cincinnati a week ago, he was relegated to his lowest seeding in a Major since 2005's Wimbledon. Despite his third spot the powers that be nevertheless decided to keep the possibility of the big match-up alive, placing the two in separate halves of the bracket.

Nadal's got a tough first round against Richard Gasquet, just back on Tour after a two-month suspension for illeged cocaine use. That obstacle aside, Rafa should have a pretty easy time into the semis, with one exception -- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. A few weeks ago I wouldn't have given the Frenchman much of a chance, but after that stunning comeback from being down 1-5 in the third set to defeat Federer, I can no longer discount him.

Oddly enough, if Nadal does win the title, he'll achieve a career Grand Slam, only the seventh man to do so, a short four months after Roger accomplished the same feat at Roland Garros. I'd speculated before that Nadal could have gained the honor before Federer, and still contend that he would have had he not gotten injured. And while I think he still will get there -- and soon -- he may have to wait a little longer. Of the admittedly few people who voted on my online poll, half believe Rafa will eventually win the Open, just not this year.

Instead, a ton of hype continues to swirl around Andy Murray, Nadal's potential semifinal opponent. My prejudices aside, I'm still not sure he has it in him. He blamed a grueling week in Montreal for his "early" loss in the Cincinnati semifinals (incidentally, the same excuse that led Juan Martin Del Potro to withdraw from the second Masters event).

While Murray had a week off to rest and train, he's got a couple of threats in his section of the draw. His opening round against Ernests Gulbis should be routine, but the Latvian has had some successes this year, beating Novak Djokovic and Sam Querrey. Big-serving Ivo Karlovic looms as a potential third-round opponent and, if he remains healthy, DelPo could be in search of revenge to keep Murray out of the semis. But, to be honest, I have to admit the Scot will likely get there.

For his spot in the final four, fourth seeded Novak Djokovic may have to face Wimbledon runner-up Andy Roddick, who has beaten him all three times they've met this year. I've never been particularly impressed by the Serb -- even though he's the only man other than Roger or Rafa to win a Major since Australia in 2005 -- but he really impressed me in Cincinnati last week, really working a struggling Nadal and holding his ground after being demolished by Federer in their first set.

Roddick for his part won his only title of the year in Memphis, but he did make two finals in a row this summer and he's the last one to win in New York since Roger began his reign. He's looked consistently strong all year and has had more than a week off to rest. Andy should also take comfort in the fact that Del Potro, his nemesis all summer, is in the other half of the draw. Roddick could face rising star John Isner in the third round, though, a man who gave him quite a run in D.C. and seems to be getting more and more confident on the big stage.

Speaking of up-and-coming Americans, let's not forget Querrey, who secured his spot at the top of the U.S. Open Series leaderboard when he beat Bjorn Phau in the third round at New Haven. He's got an extra million dollars riding on his performance in New York, and I can think of no better motivation to power through some tough draws. Sam could force a repeat of Thursday's quarterfinal with Nikolay Davydenko in the round of sixteen, a match he won in an exciting three sets.

Women's Draw

Defending U.S. Open champion Serena Williams is the second seed this week, behind Dinara Safina who's played in eight finals already this year. Of course Serena is always a contender at a Slam as she always brings her A-game to the big stage. Then again she was less than stellar in the lead-up to New York, notching losses to Sam Stosur and Sybille Bammer, either of whom she could meet before the quarters, and looking utterly defeated in her semifinal loss to Elena Dementieva in Toronto, someone she can only see in the final.

In order to get there though, she'd have to get through yet another challenge from her older sister. The draw masters were less kind to Serena and Venus than they were to Roger and Rafa -- if the brackets procede as intended, they would meet in the semis. Venus, of course the champ here in 2000 and 2001, has been struggling too during the summer. She lost in the L.A. finals to Marion Bartoli, who she might face in the fourth round, and didn't get in more than two match wins after that.

As for the #1 seed, I fear Safina will have a tough time in New York -- and you seem to agree. In the poll I conducted over the past week, only one person said she would win the Open this year. While she definitely has the ability to win a Major eventually, she seems to have a mental block when it comes to the big tournaments. Runner up in two French Opens and another Australian, she also choked in Cincinnati and Toronto, two premier events. She's got a quaterfinal date with last year's runner-up Jelena Jankovic, who crushed her a few weeks back in Ohio, and is in the same half as Svetlana Kuznetsova, her vanquisher in Paris. Dinara's going to need a little more than luck to make her third Major final this year.

The players that round out the top five should also not be forgotten. Jankovic herself proved in Cincinnati that she's still got the fight that earned her a #1 ranking last year -- she was magnificent in that defeat of Dinara Safina in the earlier this month. And Toronto champ Dementieva has had an incredible year -- like Querrey, she heads up the U.S. Open Series standings and will earn a nice little bonus if she advances well into this draw. Even Pam Shriver, who rarely concedes anything, suggested she was one of the favorites in New York.

Runner-up in Toronto, Maria Sharapova, who won the Open in 2006, made her first final of the year a week ago after playing five straight days of high-intensity matches. While she looked wholly exhausted last Sunday, she's got to love the fact that, weather permitting, she should have a day to rest between her appearances in New York. And her performance up north helped her reach a #30 ranking, which blessed her with a much-coveted twenty-ninth seed for the fortnight. Her biggest challenge will be the potential rematch with Dementieva in the third round, but if she gets through it, no one will argue that she's not still a force in the game.

And of course Kim Clijsters makes her return to the stage on which she won her only Grand Slam four years ago. She's done decently well in the two tournaments since coming out of retirement, even defeating a couple top players, but as a wildcard, she wasn't given a seed in this tournament. Though early opponents like Bartoli and Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues shouldn't present a big problem, she could see a bigger challenge in Venus or Victoria Azarenka, who gave her a quite a fight in Canada.

Things to Watch

Outside of the headliners there are of course a few other players who could pose a big threat in their draws.

Thanks to quarterfinal appearances in Wimbledon and Cincinnati, Lleyton Hewitt is at his highest ranking in over a year -- he even brought home his first trophy since 2007 with a big win in Houston. And another former #1, 2002 U.S. Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero is also back after a six-year title drought. He's had a busy summer, defeating Tommy Robredo in Washington and Gael Monfils in Montreal.

On the women's side, Sam Stosur and Flavia Pennetta are mounting their own runs of success in 2009. Stosur backed up a semifinal appearance in Paris with her defeat of Serena in Stanford and a final in Los Angeles, where she lost to Pennetta. For her part, the first Italian woman ranked in the top ten put together a string of fifteen wins on her way to two titles this summer. She also made the semis in New Haven, but fell short of topping the Open Series leaderboard when she lost to defending Pilot Pen champ Caroline Wozniacki. Both Flavia and the Danish teenager could pose a threat in New York.

And then there are the wildcards -- both actual and figurative -- a couple of young Americans playing their first couple of matches in the big leagues of a Slam. At the Taste of Tennis, veteran Chanda Rubin told me she's been scouting out some of the up-and-coming stars:

"Look at Melanie (Oudin) -- last year she was playing in the main draw, had gotten a wild card, but she was also still in Juniors. But then you talk about this year and some of the big wins she's had, in Fed Cup really helping to pull the team through...It's been great."

Seventeen-year-old Oudin shocked the world when she got to the second week at Wimbledon with a win over Jankovic, while University of Florida alum Jesse Levine scored his own upset of Marat Safin in the first round in London. And John Isner, Newport champ Rajeev Ram and Alexa Glatch have all had some of their best results this year.

As always there are plenty of opportunities for upsets and breakthrough performances across the draws. I'm sure the tournament will capture all the excitement of the city it calls home and, in the end, two very deserving competitors will hold the trophies high. But I can't wait to see the battles on the way!

One Taste Is Never Enough

With the U.S. Open just a few days away, some of the brightest stars in tennis showed up for another cause tonight -- the tenth annual Taste of Tennis was held at Manhattan's W Hotel, with proceeds from the event going to benefit the Food Bank of New York.

Current top-ten players like Andy Roddick, Victoria Azarenka and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as well as legend Billie Jean King paired up with chefs at some of the city's prime restaurants to serve up some quality eats from citrus marinated hamachi to chilled summer corn soup, miso chocolate brownies to waffles with adult beer floats.

Puerto Rico's star chef Roberto Trevino of Budatai told me why he was so excited to be at the event:

"Other than it just being ultra fabulous, and it being in the absolute capital of the world, if you ask me, in New York City. It brings together people here at the W with great food. Chefs aren't usually paired with tennis players, so for me it's a great pleasure."

The "Green Carpet" rolled out on Forty-Ninth Street on one of the (thankfully) most beautiful nights of the summer so far as every manner of celebrity showed up. Melissa Joan Hart, promoting her run on this season's Dancing With the Stars, the Mets' Carlos Delgado and reigning beauty queens from Albania and Kosovo were all in attendance.



"Real" New York City housewife Bethenny Frankel (who is, by the way, not a housewife at all) was surprisingly refreshing and clear about what brought her to midtown:

"I'm bartending with Andy Roddick, so I have high priorities...I made all my Skinny Girl cocktails and Skinny Guy cocktails using the Rums of Puerto Rico. It's cool that all the tennis players are going to be cooking...with all the pressure of the tennis games coming up. It's a little light, a little fluid, a little eat, drink, and be merry."

As for the players themselves, they were excited not just about the Open, but about testing their chops in the kitchen. Newly domesticized Roddick said that married life didn't bring him any cooking skills, and seventh-seeded Vera Zvonareva confessed her affinty and longing for a cake her mother used to make while she was growing up.

And with the start of play only a few days away, the athletes were keeping their upcoming battles in perspective.

Charleston champ Sabine Lisicki faces Aravane Rezai in her debut match: "Every round is difficult. It's a Grand Slam, so nothing will be easy. Everybody wants to win, so I'll just focus on one round at a time and we'll see." Meanwhile, Aleksandra Wozniak reflected on her defeat of Svetlana Kuznetsova at Eastbourne: "It's definitely a life experience. You compete against the best players in the world every week, and each win makes you feel like you belong there. It makes you feel like you can achieve more, and it gives you more belief and confidence."



And for me the entire night just whet my appetite for what's to come in the next few weeks in Flushing Meadows. As always, the U.S. Open somehow becomes the most exciting Grand Slam of every year -- and I can't wait for the action to start!

By the way, thanks to the WTA for this much more extensive footage! (Yup, that's me in the background!)

By the Way...

Let me not forget to pay tribute to Elena Dementieva who was finally able to elevate herself from "bridesmaid" status earlier today when she won her third title of the year.

After gaining sweet, sweet revenge against Serena Williams in yesterday's semifinal match -- one in which she steamrolled over the reigning Wimbledon, Australian and U.S. Open champion in the second set -- she took on Maria Sharapova, who'd reached her first final since she took the title in Amelia Island last year.

The two had played ten times before, with Maria holding a decisive 8-2 advantage. Today both she and Dementieva started sloppily on serve. There were seven breaks in the first set, with Elena getting the key one for a 6-4 lead. She kept her cool in the second set, notching for herself the only break to take home her fourteenth championship -- a win that, if I did my math right, should get her back to #3 in the world.



Whether Dementieva will be able to translate her victory into a solid performance in New York is still a question. I worry about how often she can be broken, but the fact that she can power through opponents like Williams and Sharapova, both former #1s themselves, sure argues that maybe a strong serve isn't the most important thing in tennis. With the innate power and smarts she does possess, I don't think anyone would want to see her in their portion of the draw.

And I'm looking for her to go far, and hopefully end the year the same way she started it!

Sweet Sixteen

Today is an important day in tennis history.

Thirty-six years ago, on August 23, 1973, the very first ATP rankings were released with Romanian Ilie Nastase claiming the top spot. Since then twenty-four different men have held the position, and today one of them took the court on the road to claim his sixteenth Masters title.

In the finals of the Western & Southern tournament in Cincinnati, Roger Federer, who first became #1 in February of 2004 took on Serbia's Novak Djokovic, who achieved his career high ranking of #3 a little more than two years ago. Both players have been a regular fixture at Masters events in recent years -- Federer of course has won fifteen titles while Djokovic has quietly made his way to three finals already in 2009 (he lost twice to Rafael Nadal and once to Andy Murray).

From the get-go Roger looked like he was out to show the world why he's been #1 for so long. Nole was looking to win his first championship in Cincinnati, Roger his fourth, but after last night's trouncing of Rafael Nadal, the twenty-two year old got off to a slow start. His first service game was a marathon thirteen minutes long, comprised of eight deuces, two game points and seven break opportunities. Eventually Roger converted, helping him get off to a quick 5-0 lead in the set.

Djokovic seemed to regroup in the second, this time coming up the winner in another long second game. He took the early 3-0 lead, and I wondered, however briefly, if we were about to see a mirror image of the first few games. Though he did allow Roger to get back on serve, Novak held another set point at 5-4.

Instead Roger played like he almost always does when a title is on the line. With Novak serving at five-all, the best player in the world took advantage after his opponent's drop shot stopped short of the net and turned up the pressure on a second serve. Federer's fourth break of the match gave him the opportunity to close out the championship, a task he completed in just a few minutes, holding Djokovic at love in the next game.

Nole was given credit for his much improved level of play in the second set, but knew that he was just out-matched beginning to end. When the Western & Southern CEO accidentally presented him with the champion's cup, he very appropriately djok-ed, "the closest I was about to get to the first place trophy was now."

So with his sixteenth Masters trophy in hand, Roger sets off for New York and the U.S. Open, where he seeks to win his sixteenth Major title. It's already been a year of records for him, and now once again playing at his best, there's no reason to believe he won't set another one. Looking ahead to Flushing Meadows, Roger is confident and is hoping the fans of the great city get behind him again. At his post-match press conference he said:

"I was lucky enough that when I got to New York (last year), the fans were really there trying to push me back to #1 right away. They were great, you know. Like all the cab drivers and everybody was stopping to wish me luck. It was something that I've never really experienced before in New York. I think that really helped turn it around for me after having the disappointment at Wimbledon."

With support like that it's hard to believe that Roger's second sweet sixteen won't be long away.

The Quiet Killer

People don't give Novak Djokovic enough credit.

I'd never seen either him or Rafael Nadal play live before tonight at the second semifinal at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati. But in the numerous matches I'd seen televised, he'd only impressed me maybe a handful of times.

Tonight was an exception.

Nadal and Djokovic had played each other eighteen times before tonight, with the Spaniard holding an impressive 14-4 lead. But though he had won their previous five matches, the last time Nole did pull off the victory was on this court in the semis last year. In fact all four of his wins have come on hard courts, the only surface on which he holds a lead against the newly-minted #3.

Djokovic is hardly a slouch -- ranked just below Nadal at #4 in the world, he's won 13 titles during his career, including two in Dubai and Belgrade in 2009. He's also made four other finals and three more semis, amassing a 52-15 record. But like other overshadowed stars, he's easy to forget.

But he's been in top form all this week in Ohio. After losing in the quarterfinals last Friday in Montreal to Andy Roddick, he hasn't lost a set here. Through the semis he held serve 30 of 33 games and let the final four in winning eighty-five percent of his first serves. And with an injured Nadal only playing his seventh match since the French Open, surely Djokovic had to know that this would be the best opportunity he'd had to beat Rafa in a long time. In his post match press conference he acknowledged his confidence:

"Hard court is my favorite surface and the surface where I achieved the biggest success so far in my career. I just feel comfortable playing on this surface. It just suits my game. I was aware that I would have to raise the level of my game tonight in order to win against Rafa."

And did he ever raise his level. He played some of the most graceful strokes I'd seen in a long time, getting eighty-one percent of his first serves in and converting his first two break point opportunities to take the first set 6-1, in less than a half-hour.

In the second set, too, Djokovic stayed strong. Though he lost three chances to break Rafa yet again in the opening set, he wasn't rattled and only ceded one point in his next game. After earning a break in the fifth game, Nole was tested a few times as Rafa got ahead on a few of the Serb's service games -- but his game was on point and after an hour-long second set, Djokovic earned his spot in the Cincy finals for the second straight year.

There he will meet Roger Federer, another man he has a surprisingly good record against. Though he still lags the current #1, he has notched victories in their last two meetings in Miami and Rome. He reflected on what awaits him tomorrow afternoon:

"He's a different kind of tennis than Rafa. Rafa runs more and gives you more time to do things that you like. But with Roger the points are shorter, so if he plays the way he was playing most of the year so far, it's going to be really difficult."

But if he continues to play at this same level, Djokovic has certainly shown that he's capable of doing it.

And while the semifinal loss may have been a disappointment to Nadal and his fans -- me included -- he was happy with his performance over the last two weeks, but knew he had some things to work on:

"This match is gonna be a good experience for me right now. These two weeks, winning three matches here and two matches there, five match wins and seven matches in total, it's enough matches I think…Djokovic played with very high intensity, and for me it was a little bit hard to keep at this intensity all the time. I can play some points, but I need to be ready to play at this level, to do something special, do a little bit more than usual."

And I know we'll be seeing him do just that in but a few week's time!

A Day of Firsts

Welcome to Ohio!

My trip this weekend to watch the semis & finals of the Western & Southern Financial Group's Masters Tournament in Cincinnati is one of many firsts for me: the first time I've been in the state since my parents moved me away in 1983, the first time I've taken a plane solely to watch a tennis tournament, the first time I sat in an actual press box (with A/C and shelter from the looming rainclouds!), the first time I ever watched the #1 and #2 players in the world play live.

And another first, at least of what I can remember -- they aren't doing so in the finals. Yes, this is the first time in a long time, if ever -- I'm sure some of my Twitter followers will let me know for sure! -- in which such a significant change in positioning happened just before such a big tournament. And with the draws announced late last week, that meant former third-ranked Andy Murray was put in the same half of the draw as current top dog Roger Federer.

Despite my prejudices I have to admit I was a little more excited to watch this battle than I thought I'd be. Though I've seen Murray in action once before -- at the quarterfinals of last year's U.S. Open -- this was actually my inaugural Federer performance, and one that I knew would showcase his best. It's not everyday the draws work out so you really do get to watch the highest quality tennis on the final weekend. And with the last Grand Slam of the year barely a week away, both had something to prove.

Murray of course had the weight and confidence of a new #2 ranking and Roger, the devastating memory of losing a match in which he had been ahead 5-1 in the third. And to further complicate things, Federer hadn't defeated Andy since last year in Flushing Meadows, losing their last four meetings in three sets each.

Today, however, Roger came out swinging. He took the early lead in the first set, breaking Murray in his second service game and got to a 0-40 lead in the sixth. In the first set he broke Andy twice while only allowing six points total on his own games, easily taking the set in thirty minutes.

But he was careful not to get ahead of himself. In three of his last four losses to Murray, Roger had run off to an early lead, only to fall apart in the end. In his post-match press conference, he was asked how his recent history against the Scot affected his game today.

"In the last few times I'd played against him, very often I won the first set and ended up losing the second set, then can't find my way back into the match in the third -- that's kind of how he started running away with it. To me it was always important, this time around, that the same doesn't happen again. I stayed aggressive, I was always looking to make the plays, and in the end I deserved to win because I wasn't scared to go after my shots."

While he certainly did let Murray back into the match again today -- the new #2 raised the level of his own game infinitely in the second set, serving eight aces and never allowing a break point -- Roger kept his level of play up as well. Murray never could get under Federer's skin and never scored more than two points on his opponent's service games.

The resulting tiebreak was surprisingly a nail-biter. Roger again took the early lead 4-1, but a barrage of power from Murray gave him the first set point at 5-6. The two stayed on serve for several more points until a tentative double fault at 9-8 gave the match to Roger and sends a frustrated Murray home to train for New York.



So Federer advances to his fifth final of the year -- he won the title in Madrid as well as, of course, Roland Garros and Wimbledon -- where he'll meet the winner of the Rafael Nadal/Novak Djokovic match being played later tonight. While Roger acknowledged that either would be a tough opponent, he admitted he'd like to see Rafa come through with the win, especially since he's coming back from an injury.

I'm "not that surprised that he's doing so well just because -- I mean the guy's only lost like six matches this year…Of course he's looking for his game. I hope he's feeling well now. At the end of the day, he's a great player and an unbelievable competitor. He's got that image, too, which the players know about. He's obviously going to make it hard for the opponent. It seems like things are coming back together for him, which is great to see."

For so long I had been waiting for the fated fight between a #1 Rafa and a #2 Roger. Now that we've been there and seen that, I'm aching to witness the first time a #1 Federer plays a #3 Nadal.

Interestingly, if Nadal does win the title tomorrow, he'll reclaim his previous ranking from Murray and enter the U.S. Open as the second seed.

And while that might not set up the first meeting between Rafa and Roger in a Grand Slam final -- I certainly hope it won't set up the last.

The Comeback Kids

Is it just me or do this week's tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati feel a little bit like 2007? (Well, with one big exception.)

Some of the biggest successes on the court are coming from one-time number ones like Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, and most notably Kim Clijsters, who was stopped just shy of making her second straight quarterfinal in as many weeks back on tour.

As should be expected the road back from recovery is often long and slow, and everyone was a little spotty out of the gate. But watching Rafael Nadal in his match last night against Paul-Henri Mathieu, I was reminded of the man who defeated Roger Federer on his home court in Wimbledon. After a shaky start, losing his serve early, Nadal rebounded quickly, taking the first set 7-5 and only allowing Mathieu five points on his service games in the second.

After the match he acknowledged it had been his best match since returning from a knee injury, but knew he'd face a strong competitor in Czech Tomas Berdych today. Nevertheless he has to like his chances for what's left of the draw -- because he only just lost his #2 ranking to Andy Murray this week, if he makes the semis he would face #4 Novak Djokovic, a man against whom he has an impressive 14-4 record. A final appearance at this Masters tournament would certainly put him on good ground heading to the U.S. Open.

Maria Sharapova is also looking better than she has in quite a while this week. Though she's made at least the quarters in all but one tournament she's played since she returned in Warsaw this past May, you still saw signs of weakness in her serve and her forehard. Last night though her A-game was back, or at least her B-plus game. She fired off four aces and won seventy percent of her first serve attempts. True, she was playing Vera Zvonareva who is nursing her own set of injuries, but even still it was an encouraging result.

And even though she didn't advance past the third round this week, you have to be impressed by Kim Clijsters, who came out of retirement last week in Cincinnati. There she made the quarters, taking out twelfth seed Marion Bartoli and Roland Garros champ Svetlana Kuznetsova on her way. This week in Toronto she triumphed over ninth seed Victoria Azarenka and took the first set triumphantly from Jelena Jankovic before falling in three.

Earlier today Clijsters tweeted:

"Disappointed and a little frustrated with the match last night, still shows how close I am to Top five level after a few matches back"

So she certainly knows she still has what it takes to compete against the best. Though it may some time for her to be the force she was when she left the game in 2007 -- she was ranked fourth in the world then -- it might not be as long as you'd think.

In any case the rebounds these three players have staged since returning to the scene have been nothing short of spectacular. They may not be quite at the top of their game, but their successes just reflect how much innate talent they possess. And I'm sure they'll cause more than a few sparks when they take the court in New York in a few weeks!