Put that leftover turkey down and slap on some sunscreen, the Summer of Tennis is here as we eagerly await the first bounce at Rod Laver Arena for the Australian Open 2009.
There is an aura of calm at the moment as the food and merchandise tents, stadium displays and scoreboards are being set up. Staff are working tirelessly behind the scenes, plugging in cabling for television feeds, finalising maps to the whereabouts of the drink fountains, and distributing uniforms to the hundreds of temporary tournament staff.
We have new sponsors this year round and plenty more to look forward to: Vodafone Arena is now known as the Hisense Arena, the blue courts are yesterday’s news, the vast array of live entertainment to enjoy, and Spiegelworld – a giant fun park-like setting for those who visit Melbourne Park.
Many of the big guns have yet to arrive in Melbourne, such as the Williams sisters and Maria Sharapova.
However, based on the many matches we have seen Down Under to date, the women’s line up is intriguing.
Here are some observations from this week.
Dinara Safina has been enjoying the warm weather in Perth this week, playing alongside brother Marat at the Hopman Cup. The pair are drawing in the numbers at the Burswood Dome, with many keen to see the duo in action. Dinara will do some damage come the second week of the grand slam.
Prodigal daughter, Jelena Dokic, will be keen for some on-court success now that she’s back playing for Australia. Having qualified for a wildcard to the main women’s draw, she shown some good form against former grand slam winner Amelie Mauresmo in Brisbane earlier this week.
Dokic was unlucky not to win.
However, she should be relatively satisfied with her form leading into the all-important major. There have been no signs of Damir as yet, so that might be a good omen.
Less than impressive, Ana Ivanovic needed three sets to knock off Italian Roberta Vinci the other night. The Serbian looked unsettled and nervous at times and almost ‘did a Novak Djokovic’ via an early exit to the tournament. But she regained her composure and drew on her experience to close out the match.
She meets Frenchwoman Mauresmo next, after Amelie won a nail biter against compatriot Julie Coin. Coin, like Dokic, was unlucky not to win.
German youngster Sabine Lisicki has been impressive in Perth this week, with some hard-fought victories over Meghann Shaughnessy and Casey Dellacqua.
It will be interesting to see how she fairs in the main draw in Melbourne.
Forgetmenot
Guest
Dokic may wear the Australian badge but she doesnt represent the majority of Australians. This years tournament should be very exciting. With Federer brought back to the pack a bit more, and Nadal still not up to his best, the field is way open. Jokovich, Tsonga, Nadal, Federer, Roddick are all part of a fantastic field that is also sure to bring out a few unknowns into the spotlight. Each year the Aussie Open has some awesome stories of coming back from the edge and hopefully this year will be the same. Is Muhammed Ali attending? Perhaps Ali, Tsonga and Buddy Franklin can get a photo shoot together, they are the same person after all.
Kazama
Roar Guru
Tania Tchea: "I am sad that this will be Marat’s last year of professional tennis. What a champ. Wonder what he will do after?" I second that. I have been a fan of Marat for a long time and I'm privileged to have seen him play in two great matches at the Aussie Open in 2007 - a marathon against Ben Becker on opening night and his four set loss to Roddick in the third round. His second round match against Dudi Sela was also apparently a good one; unfortunately I didn't have access to Vodafone Arena. He's a fantastic character and of course he can still be a dangerous opponent. Hopefully he can put a good run together in Melbourne, à la Wayne Arthurs the year I was there - sans the heart-breaking ending. With his personality I think he'd make a great colour commentator or even a presenter. I believe he can speak three languages; if that's the case he shouldn't have any problem finding work.
Tania Tchea
Guest
I agree. Men's tennis is so much better these days. The solid groundies and ferocious competition between all the big guns. I am sad that this will be Marat's last year of professional tennis. What a champ. Wonder what he will do after?
Cpaaa
Guest
Spiro i think the grunt was taken from martial arts. like martial art the power punch releases a chi energy for more power. i would imagine the same is in tennis as you focus and hit the ball. the harder the shot the louder the scream, and it also puts your opponent off.
Cpaaa
Guest
i love the australian open and the tournaments leading up to it. i just wish we had a "Pat Rafter" or "Pat Cash" still representing us. Hewit dosnt do it for me, never did never will. Hopefully Bernard Tomic is the real deal and the one to put Australian Tennis back on the map in the near future.
Kazama
Roar Guru
tt: "There have been no signs of Damir as yet..." He's probably still trying to find the bomb that he said he wants to drop on us. I'm certainly looking forward to the Aussie Open but I don't hold much hope for the local charges. I doubt anyone except Hewitt will survive the first couple of rounds, and even he may fall early if he gets an unkind draw. Murray is in great form at the moment, compared to his rivals anyway, and I expect him to win it. The real question is which unheralded player will step up and make the final this year?
Spiro Zavos
Expert
It'll be interesting to read what the gruntometer has to say about the continual and annoying grunting of the players, especially most of the top women. Clearly it is something that has been coached into them. What is the purpose of the grunt? Still it gives me the annual chance to revive Peter Ustinov's line after listening in some pain to Monica Seles (the first of the grunters) grunting her way to a victory: 'I'd hate to be in the next hotel room to her on her wedding night!'
Sherry
Guest
Dokic still has some of the best groundies in women's tennis, and a polite hiss rather than the totally boring scream of you know who. Go Jelena! But it's the guys who'll provide the most interest mainly because of Murray being able to handle the best these days. We get one Andy on the way to the very top, and another Andy who, after his one GS victory, probably won't see another one because a huge serve and a big forehand just ain't enough anymore. Roger, Murray or Raffi - IMHO, any one of them will come out ahead of Djokovic on the Rebound Ace.