Murray is a player more suited to the hard courts but his grass game seems to have come on a lot over the past year. He pulled out an outstanding array of shots in the Queen’s final against James Blake and made victory look relatively easy. I have great admiration for Blake as a player and the way Murray dealt with him was impressive to say the least, the American seemed to have no response to Murray’s high-tempo game.

Where the Scot has come unstuck in previous Wimbledon Championships has perhaps been his failure to kill a game off, often making sloppy mistakes meaning he has to play a full five sets before he beats his opponent. This has a big effect on his fitness for the following matches and you can often see Murray feeling the effects of fatigue later on in competitions. His displays at Queens demonstrate Murray seems to have overcome this particular problem and he should see off the lesser known players with greater ease meaning he is fresher when he faces the greats such as Roger Federer. Obviously, Rafael Nadal’s absence will make things easier for him (ever so slightly).

A problem that seems to haunt British players at Wimbledon is the expectations of the British media who always put the pressure on the best British representitive to lift the trophy. For some players this helps them, Tim Henman, for example, arguably overachieved by reaching the semi-final stage of the competition four times. Henman never won a Grand Slam and in all fairness never really looked as if he was going to, yet the British media continued to talk up his chances. Similarly Greg Rusedski’s chances were always talked up but in reality it would have been highly unlikely for the big-serve specialist to have gotten much further than the quarter finals in a Grand Slam.

Without a doubt Murray is the best British tennis player in a long time and if anyone is going to end the 73-year wait winner it surely has to be him. However, the player himself remained cautious on his chances of upsetting the tennis odds and lifting the trophy at the end of the tournament.

Speaking after his Queen’s victory Murray said: “I’m a long way from winning Wimbledon.

“I feel confident but I try not to get too far ahead of myself before I’ve played my first match there.”

If Federer does indeed lift the French Open title he will finally have matched that 14 Grand Slam record that is currently held by Pete Sampras. The 27-year-old has made the last three finals in France but has been bettered each time by Nadal, who usurped him as World Number One around this time last year. He faced a tricky semi-final tie against World number five Juan Martín del Potro, getting past him in a very grueling five setter. Federer is now the tennis betting favourite to get past Soderling.

It would be a massive milestone for him to match Sampras’ record and one he thoroughly deserves after such an impressive career. If he does indeed match the record set by Sampras you wonder how long it will be before Nadal betters it anyway, at 23 he already has six Grand Slams under his belt and a blip at this year’s French won’t put him off his hunt for silverware during 2009. If you’re betting on the French Open final I would without a doubt go for Federer.

Henin’s Retirement:

No one saw this coming. The 7-time slam Champion called it quits days after her loss to Dinara Safina at the German open.Henin’s retirement which came two weeks before the French Open reminded tennis fans of the retirement of her compatriot Kim Clijsters not too long ago. Henin’s reason that she had given her everything to the game and now needed to  focus on life outside tennis made sense considering all the personal trauma she had been through. Henin had absolutely no regrets in her mind- including not winning Wimbledon-  (Henin lost in the final twice to Venus Williams (01) and Amelie Mauresmo (06). Post Henin’s retirement, the WTA tour had no clear number one. Also, tennis was deprived of its most beautiful shot (as McEnroe put it) – the Henin single-handed backhand

Nadal’s Ascent to Number 1 and that final: 

In January 2008, things did not look too great for Nadal. Novak Djokovic was closing the gap and the young Serb went on to win the Australian Open and Nadal only managed the semi finals. While post the Australian Open he did have some consistent results he did not win a title till he moved to his preferred clay courts. He quickly accumulated titles at Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Hamburg and clinched his fourth French Open title with an ultra dominant performance. Post Roland Garros, the action shifted to London where Nadal won his first grass-court title, the Artois Championships and carried the momentum to Wimbledon where he beat the five-time defending champion Roger Federer in a five-set classic. The final which was in stark contrast to the one played at Roland Garros between the two few weeks earlier, was hailed as the greatest tennis match ever played. Following that incredible match, Nadal went on to add the Olympic singles title at Beijing making it an absolutely memorable year for him.  

The Roger Slump (!) and Resurgence:

How does reaching a semi final and two other slam finals equate to a slump? In general terms it may not, but when it comes to gauging Roger Federer it does. For the past four and a half years he has dominated the sport like no other player, thus redefining goals and benchmarks again and again. During that time, every other player on the tour was subjected to that standard and they invariably fell short. Only this year Roger found himself being constantly compared to the Roger of the past years and he found himself falling short.

The main reason for his losses can be summed up in one word- mononucleosis, a glandular fever that he was diagnosed with a fortnight after the Australian Open, but one which was affecting his system right from the beginning of the year. In retrospect, it was surprising that Federer could even manage to play, let alone walk onto the court. He lost in the Australian Open semis to the eventual winner Novak Djokovic and then failed to win a title till the clay-court season began. During that lean phase he had loses to Andy Murray in his opening match at Dubai, Mardy Fish at Indian Wells and Andy Roddick at Miami. Federer still was suffering from the effects of the illness and the lack of match practice did not help. He went on to win his first title of 2008 at the Estoril Open on clay, beating Nikolai Davydenko in the final.After not winning any other title on the surface, Roger moved to his favourite surface- grass. He won the pre-Wimbledon warm-up at Halle without dropping a set or his serve.After the loss at Wimbledon to Nadal in the final, Federer continued to struggle with early losses to Frenchman Gilles Simon and Ivo Karkovic at the Rogers Cup and Cincinnati Masters respectively.

Perhaps the biggest post-Wimbledon disappointment came in the form of the quarterfinal loss to American James Blake in the quarterfinals at the Beijing Olympics. Federer however recovered quicker than he was expected to and won the Olympic doubles gold medal with his counterpart Stanislas Wawrinka. This medal proved to be sufficient motivation for the Swiss Champion as he defended his US Open title successfully. Doing so, he became the first player to win two slams successively for five years. The victory at New York meant that Roger was just a slam short of equalling Pete Sampras’ record of 14 slams. 

The Serbian Rise Continues:

Serbia got its first singles grand slam champion in the form of Novak Djokovic at this year’s Australian Open. The young Serb cemented his status as one of the three best players in the world with this win and led to the coinage of the phrase Big Three of Tennis. What Novak might not have achieved till date, his countrywoman Ana Ivanovic managed to do: reach the number one position. She did so by winning the French Open by beating Russian Dinara Safina in the final. While Novak and Ana have had slam success this year, Jelena Jankovic proved to be the most consistent of them. Jelena, a strong contender for the year-end number one ranking,  reached the final of the US Open and has the most number of wins on the women’s tour this year.The Ways of the Williams sisters:

Not playing day-in day-out and playing only when they really felt and ready seems to be the secret of the Williams sisters’ success at the slams. While Venus clinched the Wimbledon title (beating Serena in the final) without dropping a set, Serena did the same at the US Open and took over the number one ranking for the first time since 2003. The sisters also tasted success in doubles winning the title at Wimbledon and also the Olympic gold medal in Beijing. 

Men: The Djoker’s Moment of Truth: 

The US Open will see a new top seed, Nadal eager to become the first man since the peerless Rod Laver to have ever won Roland Garros, Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows in the same calendar year. Defending champion Roger Federer meanwhile is more eager than ever to reclaim lost glory and inch closer to the now seemingly distant Sampras fourteen. To pick a winner however, I clearly think Nadal is fatigued after his exertions at Beijing and would not bank on him to go too far. He has so far never progressed beyond the quarters at New York . That said, I do expect some classic performances from the dethroned Federer, but I also think he is running through a serious confidence crisis at the moment, which makes me feel he is likely to stumble towards the end of the first week. If he does make it through to the late stages of the Open, a resurgent Federer is going to stake a sure claim. The pretender here is Novak Djokovic who I would rate as most likely to take home the US Open. However the Djoker has had an indifferent past season and could not play at his best, which might just pave way for young usurpers James Blake or Andy Murray.  So, my predictions are: 1. Djokovic, 2. Blake 3. Federer

Women: The Venus comeback:

The women’s draw these days is far more complex with the seeds changing like lottery standings. The Russians, as demonstrated in the Olympics are a formidable batallion, with Dementieva and Kuznetsova laying claim. The top seeded Serbs Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic need to provide succour for their rankings. What we wont be seeing this year for sure is an all Williams final since the two are on a collision course for the round of eight. I would pick Venus to meet Ivanovic in the final. My predictions are 1. Venus Williams, 2. Ana Ivanovic, 3. Svetlana Kuznetsova 

Having made all these predictions, a change of reign is imminent in both genders of the game. In this interregnum, the US Open as of now is, too close to call.

10.Martina Hingis – When Graf was fading out, the tennis world had gotten used to a single woman dominating the court and it was no surprise that this teenager, who claimed to be named after Navratilova herself, usurped the throne nonchalantly setting in the wake, a series of “youngest ever…” records. But, the early start led to an early demise, when injured and scandalized with drug abuse, Hingis was forced to quit the game prematurely. More than her entry, it was on her exit thus that a void was created at the top, leading to a series of pretenders, none of whom have adequately impressed. The dainty Swiss Miss today is a forgotten star; her countrymen have since then found, Roger Federer.

9. Justine Henin – What can you say about a great player who decided at her very best, that enough was enough? The fragile Belge belied her competence against Serena and Venus with a peanut sized frame. With a perfect backhand, nimble toes reaching out to complete volleys and a harsh, ruthless forehand, Henin was just about to capture the throne, when in the midst of it all, she called it quits. Henin battled personal troubles, injuries, accidents and illness to make it to the top. When she reached there, I suppose she no longer wanted it.

8. Serena Williams – During the interregnum after Graf, Serena Williams has come across as the most impressive women’s player by far. Not only has she won herself all the four majors, she has radically altered the game with her brutal, assaulting style that would easily be competitive even in the men’s game. If ever there was a move to make the women’s game a grueling five set one, it would suit Serena best. However, a complete lack of consistency and apparent fitness problems keep Serena from being at her best in most contests and also keep her eighth in these rankings.

7. Monica Seles – While Graf ascended the throne of women’s tennis with her supreme technique and crisp style, a pint sized double handed pretender from troubled Yugoslavia was grunting her way up with sheer aggressiveness and unmatched agility. Just when Graf’s throne was up for grabs, tragedy struck and Seles became the victim of the most infamous regicide in tennis, effectively “assassinating” her career. An overweight emotionally drained Seles made a return after her backstabbing incident only to feel ill at east on the court and never ever to play at her best. Needless to say, the world never got to see the best of Seles and thus she never achieved what she could have. Despite a short career, her achievements merit a place on this top-ten list.

6. Evonne Goolagong Cawley – It was not easy to notch up 14 grand slams in an era when Margaret Court was ceding way to Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. It was even tougher when key opponents like Billie Jean King and Navratilova were starting to use power and aggression over speed and skill. Evonne Goolagong Cawley was the last of the Aussie greats, winning 14 grand slams across three majors, narrowly missing out, four times in New York.

 5. Billie Jean King – Billie Jean is best remembered for her infamous victory over Bobby Riggs. While Riggs had earlier beaten the top ranked Margaret Court, thus adding to his chauvinism, Billie Jean King’s power and aggression foreshadowed much of what the William’s sisters would do to tennis in the future. Billie Jean amassed twelve grand slams across all majors with forceful ground strokes and  aggressive lobs which allowed her to dominate both in doubles and singles. Billie Jean, rather curiously never won the Australian Open in the Open Era, winning it instead in 1968 when it was still called the Australian Championship.

4. Chris Evert – Chris Evert has the best win-loss record in the history of the game and has a career grand slam to her name. Chris Evert also appeared in the most number of finals ever and never lost in the first round of a tournament. She is best remembered for an intense rivalry with Martina Navratilova, while ruling the clay court, often caving in at the grass of Wimbledon to the left hander.

3. Steffi Graf – Graf reached her peak form rather early, winning her famous Golden Slam way back in 1988, coupling all four majors with the Seoul Olympic Gold. Graf’s effortless game was rarely challenged and she was perhaps the most complete player in recent times, equally at ease across all surfaces. Graf also holds the all time record for maximum time spent as the top ranked player, a record 377 weeks. However, Graf put the game at loss when she decided to call it quits in 1999 when she felt her rankings were slipping although many felt she still had years left in her.

2. Margaret Court-Smith – Margaret Court dominated the game effortlessly for more than a decade, winning all possible majors both in doubles and in singles both before and after the Open Era began. Court also is one of the few mothers to have won a grand slam, US Open 1973. The all time record that still stands in her name is that of 24 grand slam singles titles. Her all pervasive achievements in singles and double, have not ever been equalled either, except by one person.

1. Martina Navratilova –The all start resumes of Margaret Court and Martina Navratilova seem eerily similar, a cut above the rest. Martina Navratilova is the only other player, apart from Court to have dominated both the singles and the doubles games equally, earning her the “boxed” set of Grand Slams, winning all four majors in singles and doubles. She was perhaps the best known serve and volley player in the women’s game.  There are two reasons why I put Navratilova above Court, one is that Navratilova had the fortune of winning on hard court, the other is sheer longevity, playing her last match at nearly fifty, and who can forget that emotional Wimbledon final in 1994 at 37?

10. Jimmy Connors:

The games first showman, shows up at the top ten rankings as the winner of the maximum number of ATP tour titles. He did manage a couple of Wimbledon titles and was often stopped by the peak performance of Bjorn Borg. Despite Connors never winning the French Open, he could be called an all court player since he did dominate the US Open which was played on clay back then. He is in fact one of the three players, Andre Agassi and Mats Wilander being the others, to have won grand slams on hard courts, clay and on grass.

9. Rafael Nadal:

The charming Rafa makes it as the world’s best ever clay courter and the latest achiever of tennis’ toughest double – back to back grand slams on grass and clay. The mighty Majorcan has also broken the jinx of past clay court titans like Gustavo Kuerten and Sergi Bruguera and adjusted himself to all court play. Rafa’s journey has just started and if all goes well and he avoids injuring himself, we could well be witnessing some historic achievements. Those interested in tennis betting wouldn’t bet against him surprassing many of the other legends on this list in terms of most grand slams won.

8. John McEnroe:

He is given credit for elevating serve and volleying into a fine art and then making centre court more than just an exhibition of tennis talent. Most old timers, lament the fact that tennis has become too much of a gentleman’s game since the exit of the foul mouthed super brat. His grand slam exploits notwithstanding, McEnroe was also one of the greatest ever double’s players. And so if you question his ranking, ‘You cannot be serious!’<

7. Andre Agassi:

While most players start in their late teens and peak in their early twenties, Andre Agassi was the exception, improving as he aged like pure wine. In an era when big servers dominated, Agassi became the world’s greatest ever baseliner and proved his point winning all four majors albeit in different years. Personal troubles led to inconsistent performances in his early career and the tennis world could have actually missed out on seeing his very best

6. Ivan Lendl:

A genuine all rounder, Lendl was no specialist in any court but instead honed his skills to be equally sound on any surface. However, Ivan Lendl ended up the game’s greatest runner up.Winning the Australian, French and US Opens, he made the final of Wimbledon twice, against unheralded (at that time), Boris Becker and Pat Cash, only to choke on both occasions. Had he one any match out of those, his ranking would have been higher than 6 on this chart

5. Ken Rosewall:

Since this is an Open Era ranking, it is easy to forget the all pervasive achievements of the Australian. There were no hard courts at that time but Ken Rosewall was unarguably the best proponent on both grass and clay during the sixties. It was after the Open Era began that Rod Laver stole his thunder . Complications surrounding him being a professional player disallowed him from many key tournaments throughout his career. And so, his open era performances were often on the wrong side of thirty. Nevertheless, Rosewall’s backhand has never yet been equaled, as has his long twenty five year career. Rosewall makes it here as an exception to the Open Era rule since although his best performances might not have been during the Open Era, he certainly did play in it as the second best at a time when the world’s best ever player was king.

4. Pete Sampras : Pistol Pete changed the game like no one else ever has. Apart from the elegance that all the players on this list have, Sampras’ key weapon was his power. Sampras dominated the tennis world for an entire decade, possessed possibly the greatest serve ever and was never beaten at his best. Even those possessing a free bet would have never bet against him! If he ever was, it was attributed to under par performance due to some injury. But his gross underachievement on clay keeps him ranked at 4

3. Roger Federer:

Take the old world charm of a Fred Perry, the baseline skills of Agassi, the poise of Borg and the supreme technique of Pete Sampras, Roger Federer has been often called the most complete tennis player of all time. He also is the fastest achiever of the modern era running up very close to Sampras’ grand slam record in almost half the time. The Sampras vs Federer question is a hard one to answer. I put Federer above the Floridan for him being at least the second best clay court player for most of his career and not having lost at his best to anyone other than Rafael Nadal. And he still has his chances.

2. Bjorn Borg:

The Iceman ruled the courts as a baseliner when serve and volleying was the norm. He used both his hands when self respecting professionals were expected to slice their backhands with one hand. In a world that was fast changing tilting towards power over grace, Borg defied with elegance, chasing down the ball with the rarest of anticipation that one has to be born with, not acquired, returning at angles never again seen, winning points (and hearts) without ever breaking a sweat, Borg made tennis look easy. He ruled grass and clay with equanimity and came excruciatingly close four times on hardcourts. Following two successive grand slam upsets, the impassive Swede silently drew back from competing saying that he did not wish to be number 2. Well, on this list, he is.

1. Rod Laver:

The only player ever to have won the Grand Slam in the strictest sense of the word in 1969 and 1962 (amateur) is almost an automatic choice to be number 1 for most tennis experts. He is renowned for his feather touch serve and volleying, wristy groundstrokes and being the inspiration for a whole generation of players from where sprang John McEnroe and Pete Sampras. Though the latter generation’s power would probably have beaten Laver had they ever met, it is Laver’s dominance at his time that keeps him at the top and not how he would have fared against future generations.

- Psycho(the moderators don’t understand why he wants to be called that!)        

The men’s draw:  Rafa’s victory inevitable

And this year, we are probably going to see an exciting men’s draw. After all somebody needs to lose to Nadal in the final. Unlike the last two years, Federer has had a very poor start to his season and seems in rather human form. This kind of slump will take some recovering from given that he has not experience such sustained failure over the last few years. Nadal is entering the tournament playing as well as he has ever on clay. It would be a foolish man who would bet against him even given a tricky match against Nalbandian and a potential semi-final against Djokovic.

But what will be interesting to see is who will be across the net from him during the finale. At this point, while I don’t rule Federer out, his draw isn’t improving the odds. He could potentially face Wawrinka or Gasquet in the quarters and Ferrer or Robredo in the semi-finals. These are tough clay court matches and given current form, I wouldn’t be surprised if Federer lost in the semis to say, Ferrer. As for Djokovic, he is playing well and should make it to the semis. I don’t think he has developed the clay court game to beat Nadal yet. Even given the form he is in, I expect on Nadal to beat him in four sets at the most.

The women’s draw will definitely be more interesting. Henin has absolutely dominated this tournament over the past few years and her absence opens up the tournament. Personally, I would love to see Sharapova win. But she doesn’t seem patient enough to play out the long rallies and she also doesn’t slide around as well on clay. Ivanovic is playing well and the nervousness of being on the big stage would’ve reduced by the time she reaches the clay courts of Paris. I would pick her to be a finalist. And I pick Kuznetzova to be her opponent. Sharapova v Kuznetzova will be an interesting semi-final. Both of them prefer the hard courts to clay but I think on a good day, Kuznetzova’s power will see her past Sharapova on clay. Final pick, Ana Ivanovic. A final word: the Williams sisters have shown time and again that they will pull surprises out of the bag and you discount them at your own peril.

Do you agree with our picks? Who do you think is going to reign on clay this season? Let us know.

Over the past three years, the list of the number of controversies Sania has found herself in has grown at a very fast rate. The controversies include

1. Criticism by Mullahs of her short skirt. (Attire contradicts Islam and is supposedly a corrupting influence on the youth)

2. Her partnership with Israeli player Shahar Peer- again kicked off a controversy cause the same old Mullah’s didn’t recognize the state of Israel.

3. Her support of a South Indian actress over the latter’s comments on pre-marital sex. (which led to two days of protests by the Rahul-Priyanka Youth Brigade)

4. The shooting of an advertisement featuring her in a mosque in Hyderabad; a commission filed a lawsuit against her and the ad agency for illegally trespassing the mosque.

And now..

The insane flag controversy:

Somehow, the above image led to some attention seeker filing a law suit against her under the ‘Prevention of Insult to National Honour Act’. Under the terms of the act, a person can be thrown into prison for three years for insulting the country. Looking at the image it is clearly obvious that her feet are some distance away from the flag!

Ironically, the “disrespect to the national flag” issue cropped up when Sania was representing India at the Hopman Cup along with Rohan Bopanna. The thought that Sania choose to play for the country rather than play at the Sydney International and gain valuable WTA points seems to have missed the idiot who has filed this lawsuit. Whats worse, the Indian media, continues to oversell the story.

Needless comments by Paes

Indian tennis legend Leander Paes stated that there is nothing above playing for one’s own country in front of home fans and that Sania should not have skipped the Bangalore event. Couldn’t Leander apply the same “reasoning” for himself and played the Chennai Open? Tennis is an individual sport and that is the way it has been. While representing one’s country is something all players in general savor, putting unnecessary expectations on them is completely unwarranted. The pressure Sania has to deal with in India is much more than even what Tim Henman had to endure in England.

While her decision to skip the tournament has surprised and shocked many, it has come at the right time. She has been subjected to enough harassment and it is high time she stops being a publicity-generating machine for activists and news channels across the country. Her withdrawal from the Bangalore Open and tournaments in India has drawn a lot of attention from the global tennis community and it certainly has not done anything constructive for Indian tennis!

The Future:

Right now, after attaining the status of Asia’s top player, Sania has to work diligently toward her goal of entering the top 20. To do that she has to compete hard against super-talented youngsters like Agnes Szavay, Agnieszka Radwanska, Victoria Azarenka, and Alona Bondarenko. Sania has the game to do it and its just a question of staying fit and being able to get consistent results over the season. Whether the media, the fans and the mullahs let her be remains to be seen.

The Australian Open 2008 will always be remembered for the fact that it was the first grandslam when the juggernaut that is Roger Federer was stopped in over three years. The talented Serbian Nole Djokovic stopped Federer in the semifinals and then went on to win the tournament defeating another youngster Jo Wilifried Tsonga in a pulsating final. The woman’s final was a young man’s dream, two dazzling beauties in Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic fighting it out for the top prize. Sharapova of course took the match easily. The tournament through up a lot of surprises, great matches, controversies and of course a lot of new faces and set the tone for the rest of the year. Here are some of the talking points of the event.

Best Match (men): Roger Federer vs Janko Tipsarevic. Federer won 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-1) 5-7 6-1 10-8.

Before Nole Djokovic took Federer out in the semifinals, another Serb almost did just that in the third round. Tipsarevic looked class and has a good career ahead of him.

Best Match (women): Casey Dellacqua vs Amelie Mauresmo 3-6 6-4 6-4 in round 3.

Dellacqua sent the home fans into delirium by ousting the former champion. Mauresmo now faces a big fight to break back into the top 10.

Surprise of the tournament (men) : No doubt Jo Wilifried Tsonga.

Tsonga defeated the great Brit hope Andy Murray in Round 1, Chennai Open winner Mikhail Youzhny in the 4th Round and pulled off a massive upset in the semifinals when he defeated Rafael Nadal. Djokovic went on to win the tournament but the tennis world had discovered a new star (and whats more a star with a striking resemblance to Muhammed Ali!)

Surprise of the tournament (women) : Daniela Hantuchova.

At the ripe old age of twenty four Hantuchova finally overcomes her biggest the obstacle- the grand slam quarterfinal. And she might have just gone on to the final if she hadn’t blown her big lead in the semifinal against Ana Ivanovic.

The biggest disappointment: David Nalbandian

The Argentinian lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the third round in straight sets. A big let down considering his form in the indoor season in 2007 when he won both the Madrid and Paris masters (defeating both Federer and Nadal in the process)

Nasty Parent of the Tournament: Yuri Sharapov

There was no competition for Maria Sharapova in the woman’s side of the grand slam and her father Yuri wins this award hands down. Already one of the most hated parents on the woman’s tour, he was in the news for the wrong reasons during the tournament when cameras caught him gesturing to slit-her throat after Sharapova’s match against Henin. If he doesn’t curb his behaviour, he could just go the way of Damir Dokic (father of Jelena) and Jim Pearce (father of Mary) by getting banned from the tour.

Get a good job with good pay and you’re okay- Money, Pink Floyd

Lindsay Davenport became the highest-earning female athlete (over $21 million) during the course of the tournament. Davenport has always been a fantastic professional and has recently come back to the tour after becoming a mom. Here is hoping she has a great 2008.

The Sania Mirza Verdict:

Sania had a good run in the singles event reaching round 3 before running into multiple grand slam champion Venus Williams. The Indian put up a great fight matching Venus stroke for stroke in the first set before running out of steam. Sania also had a good run in the mixed doubles reaching the final with Mahesh Bhupathi.

Quotes of the tournament:

Stay in school, kids, or you’ll end up being an umpire,”- Andy Roddick yells at the umpire during his round 3 loss to German Philipp Kohlschreiber

“Nadal tried to hit Tsonga in the nuts with that ball but somehow he managed to get some wood on it.” – Jeff Tarango on 5 Live Sports Extra during Nadal-Tsonga at the Australian Open.

There’s a lot of resemblance to Uma Thurman, actually. Everyone who meets my mom says she looks like Uma Thurman.”– Sharapova on being asked about her low-profile mother

” I know you guys wanted him to win. Its ok. I still love you” – Nole Djokovic, after the final vs Tsonga where the crowd was pretty much behind the underdog the entire match.
A big thanks to Aja  for helping out with this list.

In a one-sided final of the 2008 Australian Open, Maria Sharapova won her third grand slam by beating the new world no.2 Ana Ivanovic from Serbia 7-5, 6-3. Masha, as she is fondly called by her fans went through the entire tournament without dropping a set. Sharapova’s victory seemed inevitable after the form she showed in beating world no. 1 Justine Henin (Sharapova won 6-4, 6-0) in the quarterfinals.

Through the final [tag]Sharapova[/tag] was the aggressor controlling most of the rallies. Her court coverage, though not the best in the game, has improved tremendously and coupled with her never-say-die attitude ensured that she had no serious problems in any of her matches at Melbourne. From the beginning of the final it looked clear that Masha wanted to erase the memory of last year’s final (she was ruthlessly drubbed by Serena Williams 6-1, 6-2).

Ivanovic was leading 5-4 30-30 on Sharapova’s serve in the first set, but the Serb was unable to win the set as the Russian fifth seed held her serve confidently. From then on, Ana was left playing catch-up for the rest of the match. Through the final, it seemed as if Sharapova was against an Australian player considering the support Ivanovic received from the fans. Like Kim Clijsters before her, Ivanovic has been adopted by the fans at Melbourne and Ivanvoic’s column through the tournament i an Australian newspaper certainly helped.

Maria Sharapova now has to win the French Open to complete a career slam and if she is playing at this level she has a good chance to better her last year’s semi-final appearance at Roland Garros. This is the second time that Ivanovic has ended up bridesmaid but she has the game to win on any of the four surfaces and could just end up going all the way in one of the three remaining slams.