PREVIEW: Australian Open Ladies' Final

(1) Serena Williams vs. Justine Henin
Head-to-head: 7 Serena, 6 Justine
Last meeting: Miami (hard), Serena 6-2, 6-0

Just a few thoughts on the Aussie Open ladies' final pitting top seed Serena Williams against unseeded Justine Henin, appearing in only her second tourney since returning to the tour. It's their first meet up at this Slam and it happens to be their first major final battle EVAH. I mean, they couldn't have planned it better if they tried, no?

One of the most intriguing aspects to me about this renewed rivalry is not the obvious physical one (ReRe has the clear advantage there, duh) but the heady stuff, more specifically the mental edge Justine had over ReRe before her retirement and may still have now after almost two years away.

The Belgian had her most successful year on tour in 2007 capturing 10 titles including 2 majors - Roland Garros and the U.S. Open. She impressively defeated ReRe in three consecutive quarterfinals beginning at the French Open and tied up their H2H which was sitting at 6-3 before that run.

Justine, a 7-time major winner, was clearly the dominant lady baller on the WTA tour and grabbed the momentum in this heated rivalry. She managed to match ReRe's on-court intensity but, more importantly, brought the aggression to her which she said was difficult earlier on. "We had great battles in the past," said Justine. "We played our best tennis when we played each other. At the beginning it was quite difficult for me to face Serena. Then slowly but surely I could change it a little more." The Belgian was now forcing the issue in their matches which isn't the easiest prospect when facing ReRe's power plays.

The American exacted some revenge at the Sony Ericsson Open in 2008 dismantling Justine 6-2, 6-0 on her way to the title there. But as we all know, the 27-year old was already on her way out, though a win's a win and should help ReRe in this match where head + heart could make all the difference. "It definitely will be mental and who wants it more and wants the title more and who's willing to go the extra step," said ReRe. The American knows Justine can equal her on-court efforts even admitting she "definitely think[s] of her as a rival" in her presser. No easy words for the prideful 11-time major champ.

Normally, the top seed would have the advantage on this surface because she plays better on hard courts, owning a 4-1 advantage over her Belgian foe, and loves the Aussie atmosphere as evidenced by her four titles here. She looked completely spent after clinching her semifinal against Na Li, however, and hasn't had a day off since winning her fourth rounder (playing doubles and winning the title will do that to ya.) And, based on her obvious mummification (her wrist is now taped up too) she's hurting in more ways than one.

On the flip side, Justine went the distance early in the tourney but managed straight-setters in her last two outings including a 51-minute rout of Zheng Jie in the final four. She looks fresh both physically and mentally and will draw on the belief that she can stand toe-to-toe with ReRe. There's no doubt she's hungry to join the Grand Slam winner's circle again by defeating her greatest rival on one of the biggest stages in tennis.

A lesser lady baller might wilt under the pressure of playing even a bandaged ReRe but not this Belgian. She knows what's up.

Advantage, Justine.

[Photo(s): Getty]

Rafa out four weeks with knee injury, pulls out of Rotterdam

Rafael Nadal will be out a total of 4 weeks to recover from the knee injury he sustained during his quarterfinal match against Andy Murray at the Aussie Open.

The Majorcan Matador suffered a minor tear to a tendon in his right knee and will need 2 weeks to rehabilitate the knee and will return to training over the following 2 weeks. He has pulled out of Rotterdam which begins on February 8.

He said this injury is different than the one that forced him out of his Wimbledon defense in 2009:

"As I said in Melbourne after the game... I knew the injury wasn't the same as the one I suffered last year.

"I am feeling well and am only thinking about how long it will take me to recover. I am disappointed to be missing the Rotterdam tournament. It is an event I would like to have won as I nearly did last year.

"I'm not overly worried about my ranking... all I want to do is to feel good on the court again, something I had achieved in Abu Dhabi, Doha and Melbourne where I was competing to a high standard."

I'd say this news is pretty good Rafanatics. Yeah, it's a month but the injury could've been a lot worse and taken a longer time to recover.

Here's to a speedy recovery Rafa!

[Photo(s): Getty]

Roger Federer or Serena Williams? You decide.

Roger Federer seems to have taken a page out of "The Life & Times of Serena Williams" during the post-match presser that followed his 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 drubbing of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Aussie Open semifinals today. Or maybe it's something in the Nike water.

In any case, she couldn't have said it better herself:

Q. You've won finals against Andy, but he's got the better record. Why do you think that is?

ROGER FEDERER: Well, because, first of all, he's a good player. I don't think otherwise you're just gonna start having good records against me.

But, no, without having any ‑‑ taking anything away from him, but I think a few times he played me I wasn't at my very, very best. I think I played him on a couple of occasions. Dubai the first time we played, I just came back from resting, my mono, and everything. I know some don't like to hear it. Some still don't believe me for some reason.

I played him maybe at times when I wasn't at my very, very best. We had some close matches on many occasions where I thought I was in control and I ended up giving the match away by making errors of my own. That was definitely because of his play and the way he plays.

So I think the head‑to‑head could be quite different. But that's why I don't really care too much about how the head‑to‑head stands. Every match is played differently. Best‑of‑five is anyway very different. He's done well against me to win so many matches when he was able to beat me when he was supposed to.

I LOVE when people apologize first before slapping you in the face.

Anyway it seems Fed still has little respect for Muzz's game, the game that holds a winning edge in their H2H (6-4). It must be the counter-punching style that gets under his silky Swiss skin.

Me thinks someone else should shut their pie hole and just play.

[Photo(s): Getty]

MEDIA MASHUP: Dude, shut your pie hole

"It won't shut. No, seriously."

Andy Murray gave us his best "O" face after hitting an unbelievably sick passing shot by a helpless Marin Cilic during his semifinal win over the Croat last night at the Aussie Open.

I guess if this tennis thing doesn't pan out he could put that hole to work.

Here's a clip of that shot in case you missed it:




[Photo(s): Getty, video: TheRick1993]

PHOTO OP: NaturAna does dorky good

Some images of Ana Ivanovic featured on the exterior of sponsor Verano's ZIRA shopping centre in Belgrade.

I love seeing the Serb at her most dorkalicious. But question: did the hair come with that helmet?



[Photo(s): AnaIvanovic.com]

THE LOW DOWN: Croatian fan gets on court, shakes hands with Marin - so when will this end?

A Croatian fan managed to get onto the tennis court last night after Andy Murray's 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 win over Marin Cilic in the Aussie Open semifinals.

He was eventually carted away by security but not before he was able to get close enough to shake hands with his compatriot, recalling last year's U.S. Open when an excited fan ran onto the court and planted a smooch on Rafael Nadal before security took him away and Roland Garros when a man tried to put a flag on Roger Federer during the final.


As you can see in this photo below the security in yellow (is being bald a prerequisite for this job?) seemed a bit frozen in their tracks even after he got what the 21-year old called a "present":

Q. Did you have somebody come up to you out of the stands and shake your hand?

MARIN CILIC: I think the fan got excited and he wanted to shake my hand, so... I gave him a present.

Q. What did you give him?

MARIN CILIC: Nothing. I shook his hand.

Q. He had a Croatian jumper on.

MARIN CILIC: Right, he was happy.

Okay these incidents are driving me fucking bonkers. I mean, it's good to see Marin taking it in stride but this is a big issue that needs to be addressed. Even if the ballers don't react negatively in the moment it must be a little worrisome at some level to see how easy it is for anyone in the stands to reach them. It's one thing for someone in the stands to get on court but a whole other thing to get on court and make contact with a baller. The security must have had an opportunity to stop him before he got to Marin but they failed.

How many times does this need to happen before the ITF takes a hard look at their security procedures at matches and makes real improvements? Does someone need to be harmed again before they make a concerted effort to protect the ballers? After incidents at three of the four majors you'd think they'd realize there's a big problem.

This particular fan is not even sprinting or even jogging around the court - he's moving around with ease. This is not acceptable. At all.



[Photo(s): Getty, AP]

PHOTO OP: So close we can taste it

UGH. You guys are going to make me eat my words, aren't you? Fine, just be gentle.

[Photo(s): Reuters]

QUOTE OF THE DAY: NOLE

It was unfortunate that I couldn't perform on the level that I wanted to in the fourth and fifth set. I don't want to find excuses for my loss, but, you know, I went to vomit and I had diarrhea before the match. Just a terrible feeling.

- Novak Djokovic after his 7-6(8), 6-7(5), 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 loss to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Aussie Open quarterfinals

No comment.

[Photo(s): Getty]

PHOTO OP: Vika's best bitchface

"Yuck."

Victoria Azarenka played the best set and a half of her entire life in the Aussie Open quarterfinals but then she remembered she was playing Serena Williams.

The Belarussian basher had ReRe running all over the court by ripping her backhand at will and breaking down the defending champ's forehand. But after falling down a set and 0-4 the top seed upped her game (what level WAS that?) in a classic display of tenacity and grit hitting return winners off first serves and moving more freely around the court securing a 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 win. She'll face Na Li, who edged out sister Venus Williams, in the first error-strewn quarterfinal.

Vika played a great match and didn't falter in the stretch. It was ReRe's ability to find another gear in her game and surpass anything the 20-year old could throw at her. We've all seen this play before I don't think it was surprising - even to Vika:

Q. Serena said she thought she was gone at 4‑Love. Did you think you had her as well?

VICTORIA AZARENKA: 4‑Love. Not really. I know she's gonna fight until the last point. She started playing unbelievable, I think, from 4‑Love. I don't know. I don't know if she really felt that way, because she started playing really good.

Good to see Vika's great attitude during and after this loss, which has to be somewhat disappointing. But she mostly kept her shit together and will no doubt breakthrough soon.

[Photo(s): Reuters]

Rafa succumbs to injury, retires from Aussie Open quarterfinal match

Rafael Nadal's Aussie Open defense came to an abrupt end today when the Matador was forced to retire from his quarterfinal match against Andy Murray with a knee injury trailing 6-3 7-6(2) 3-0. The Brit baller, who has reached his first semifinal in Oz, will now face Marin Cilic for a spot in the final.

The 6-time Grand Slammer was already down 2 sets in this high quality match when he called the trainer to examine his knee with the score at 0-2 in the third. He returned to the court, lost the next game and called it quits.

Rafa discussed the injury in his post-match presser:

Q. Could you let us know what the condition is, what the latest story is with the knee. It's very unusual for you to stop during a match.

RAFAEL NADAL: Yes, well, is not a lot of history because was during the match. Was in the end of the second set in one drop. And I feeled similar thing to what I had last year.

And, yes, after that I can't go down after that, no? So was impossible to win the match. When I have the chance to play, I never retired. Anyway, like I know I going to lose like I did in Rotterdam like last year. I say sorry to Andy for that.

I felt pain still there without no one minimum chance to do nothing, the same time is hard for me be five more games there without try nothing, no? So I don't know if I still playing can go worst or something. So I said, well, no repeat the same mistake like I had last year. I go to the limit, but not cross the limit, no?

Q. Is it the same sort of injury?

RAFAEL NADAL: I say before yes.

Q. Does it feel worse or the same?

RAFAEL NADAL: Worst?

Q. Does it feel as bad as it did last year?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know, no? Is happen few minutes ago, no?

Q. It happened the end of the second set?

RAFAEL NADAL: Yes.

Q. Are there any changes you're going to make to your training style or your playing style?

RAFAEL NADAL: Don't start, guys, with these questions right now. I think is not the right moment. I think I changed the style to play. If you see my matches 2005 or 2004, 2006, I run a lot compared to now, no?

So today I played against one of the best players of the world, and I think I wasn't run more than him. So I played aggressive. I played having the control of the point, a lot of the time with the forehand and the backhand, too, returning aggressive. If you see my matches three years ago, that's didn't happen, no?

Remember, we are playing on hard courts. Probably in this surface I have to play my best tennis, like today, if I really want to have chances to win. If not, then the opponents, there are really good players, and Andy's unbelievable. He's playing really well. You know, with these matches, I think I was very close today. But just little bit more calm when I had the break.

Rafa must be extremely disappointed with having to retire with a recurrence of the knee injury and not defend his title. It must have been pretty serious if he decided not to go on in a quarterfinal match at a Grand Slam. However, he seemed to be very conscious of not pushing the injury too far after last year's issues so let's hope he prevented any long term damage.

Stay tuned.

[Photo(s): Getty]