Any tennis fans on the org? Two days in and there haven't been too many upsets yet. Current US Open champ Sam Stosur lost today in her first round match. All four slam winners from 2011 have bombed out early in the next slam.

Serena is due on court after Lleyton Hewitt's match which I expect will go to five sets.

The mens side has been reliably predictable with the top seeds getting through without ant trouble. You can probably bank on Djokovic or Nadal winning with Murray and Federer having a chance too but for the women there are probably at least ten different players with a legitimate chance, I'm hoping for another young first time winner (Wozniacki, Azarenka, Lisicki).

Loving the Aussie Open. Bernard Tomic is playing great, should be a really good game against Dolgopolov tomorrow, they are both future slam winners. I'll play safe and pick Djokovic. I hope his body recovered after his long season. I'd love a Federer-Djokovic final.

Women's Field is really open. It's amazing how hard so many of the ladies are hitting now. I watched the Sydney Final between Li Na and Azarenka and they were unbelievable. The Woz will probably make her way to a quarter but there are at least half a dozen players with a better game and bigger weapons than her. I'd love to see a Williams-Kvitova match when they're both on, that would be unreal. I thought Kaia Kanepi could roll through after watching her destroy everyone in Brisbane but she just got beat today.

This guy ain't enjoying it much

Too bad that Roddick had to retire, I was hoping for an epic five set match.

The mens side is kind of boring as you can pretty much pencil in the top four to make the quarters/semis. If they serve amazing maybe Raonic and Isner can give Djokovic and Nadal some trouble but that's asking an awful lot.

If Wozniacki makes the semis I think she can beat Azarenka but she will have a very tough time in the quarters where she will likely face Clijsters or Li. It is not encouraging that she had such a tough time against Tatishvili in the second round. Kim is still looking pretty vulnerable so I'm picking a Li/Azarenka semi with Azarenka winning it. There is also a chance that Radwanska could beat Azarenka in the quarters but I don't see her beating Clijsters/Li/Wozniacki in the semis.

Kvitova looked a little shaky today and I do think that Kirilenko could upset her in the next round but assuming she gets through that match she has a great chance to make the semis where she will likely meet Serena or possibly Sharapova. Kind of tough to pick a winner on that side. Serena usually gets better the more matches she plays but she hasn't looked great yet. Maria had some great results last year but she was a bit lucky with her draw to make the final at Wimbledon and I'm not sure she can still beat the top players. It's probably down to Serena and Petra but I wouldn't be shocked if Zvonareva snuck past Serena and Maria and made the semis.

Steadwood said:

This guy ain't enjoying it much

I think he was just playing up for his crazy supporters in the crowd. Wawrinka was on fire. His backhand is wicked.

rialb said:

Too bad that Roddick had to retire, I was hoping for an epic five set match.

The mens side is kind of boring as you can pretty much pencil in the top four to make the quarters/semis. If they serve amazing maybe Raonic and Isner can give Djokovic and Nadal some trouble but that's asking an awful lot.

Poor Roddick. The body is breaking down on him, he can't keep it up for too much longer.

There's such a yawning chasm between the Top 3 and the rest of the pack, it is very predictible. It's just fortunate that they are probably 3 of the best players that have ever picked up a racket. Tsonga might have a small chance, maybe Del Potro if his body can hold together.

If Wozniacki makes the semis I think she can beat Azarenka but she will have a very tough .time in the quarters where she will likely face Clijsters or Li. It is not encouraging that she had such a tough time against Tatishvili in the second round. Kim is still looking pretty vulnerable so I'm picking a Li/Azarenka semi with Azarenka winning it. There is also a chance that Radwanska could beat Azarenka in the quarters but I don't see her beating Clijsters/Li/Wozniacki in the semis.

Azarenka is looking really good. It's such a shame she can't get rid of her grunt because she is talented. I'm getting used to it but it turns so many people off. Radwanska does seem to be stepping up since she broke from her father and I think she just beat Wozniacki in Sydney. Maybe this is a breakthrough slam for her. Clijsters health is her main opponent.

Kvitova looked a little shaky today and I do think that Kirilenko could upset her in the next round but assuming she gets through that match she has a great chance to make the semis where she will likely meet Serena or possibly Sharapova. Kind of tough to pick a winner on that side. Serena usually gets better the more matches she plays but she hasn't looked great yet. Maria had some great results last year but she was a bit lucky with her draw to make the final at Wimbledon and I'm not sure she can still beat the top players. It's probably down to Serena and Petra but I wouldn't be shocked if Zvonareva snuck past Serena and Maria and made the semis.

I love how many possibilities there are in the Womens game. Having already won it 5 times, Serena is always dangerous but like you said, it would be good for the game if a new young player could step up.

mynameisnotsusan said:

There's such a yawning chasm between the Top 3 and the rest of the pack, it is very predictible. It's just fortunate that they are probably 3 of the best players that have ever picked up a racket. Tsonga might have a small chance, maybe Del Potro if his body can hold together.

I was very disappointed that del Potro did not do better last year. I knew it was going to take some time for him to get back to the level he had when he won the US Open but I was hoping he would be there by the second half of last year.

Looking at the draw we could have a del Potro/Federer match in the quarters and whoever gets through that will likely have Nadal in the semis. I would love to see del Potro win both matches but that seems very unlikely. Nadal will probably face Berdych in the quarters. Assuming he is healthy I don't think Nadal will have any trouble with him.

The other half look much more settled with the top seeds (Djokovic, Murray, Ferrer and Tsonga) all likely to get through to the quarters. Once that happens things should become much more interesting.

Well the big guns have been really smoking. Djokovic beating Mahut 6-0 6-1 6-1 , Murray beating Llodra 6-4 6-2 6-0, Tsonga winning 6-2 6-2 6-2, Del Potro 6-2 6-3 6-0. It looks like the Top 7 seeds and Del Potro will make the Quarters barring a really big upset or injury (maybe Gasquet can take Ferrer, more likely he'll flake out)

In contrast most of the Womens Fourth rounds could go either way, apart from Azarenka and Serena, who should both continue to roll. Benesova could even give Azarenka some trouble. Kvitova should probably take Ivanovic and Sharapova has been very impressive as well but Lisicki could be the first real challenge she'll get. Lots of good match-ups to come.

Steadwood said:

This guy ain't enjoying it much

Baghdatis is a legend haha but thats a bit far.... he's an angry man!!

mynameisnotsusan said:

Well the big guns have been really smoking. Djokovic beating Mahut 6-0 6-1 6-1 , Murray beating Llodra 6-4 6-2 6-0, Tsonga winning 6-2 6-2 6-2, Del Potro 6-2 6-3 6-0. It looks like the Top 7 seeds and Del Potro will make the Quarters barring a really big upset or injury (maybe Gasquet can take Ferrer, more likely he'll flake out)

In contrast most of the Womens Fourth rounds could go either way, apart from Azarenka and Serena, who should both continue to roll. Benesova could even give Azarenka some trouble. Kvitova should probably take Ivanovic and Sharapova has been very impressive as well but Lisicki could be the first real challenge she'll get. Lots of good match-ups to come.

I just had a look at Ana and Petra's previous head to head and Ana leads 3-0 but the last time they played was at the beginning of 2009 so those previous matches are fairly meaningless. Still, if she can keep her head together I do think Ana has the game to beat Petra. Hopefully the match will at least be close.

I'm a little shocked that Zvonareva was eliminated, I was hoping she might be able to give Serena a tough match. Assuming Serena stays healthy I can't see her losing before the semis.

In theory Lisicki should be able to push Sharapova but I think that due to her height/reach Maria can handle Sabine's serves much better than most players. They played twice last year and Maria won both matches fairly easily.

Huh, Ekaterina Makarova, who in the previous round upset seventh seed Vera Zvonareva, knocked Serena Williams out of the tournament. Unexpected. Makarova will face Maria Sharapova next.

Sabine Lisicki put up a good fight but she couldn't quite beat Sharapova. I think it was during the third game of the third set that Lisicki had several break points but failed to convert any of them.

Kvitova advanced with a win over Ivanovic. Serena was probably the one player capable of stopping Petra, with her eliminated I can't see Petra failing to make the final.

Sara Errani was the other winner today. She will face Petra in the quarters. I could actually see Errani beating her outside of a slam but I think her only hope is if Kvitova has an off day with tons of unforced errors.

I don't suspect it will continue into the semi-finals but it is nice to see the top four women make it to the quarters.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was upset by Kei Nishikora. Bit of a strange match. After winning the first set Tsonga looked absolutely spent in the second and third but he did manage to force a fifth set.

Lleyton Hewitt did much better than I had expected him to against Djokovic taking a set off of him.

Andy Murray had an easy win over Mikhail Kukushkin. Murray has looked really good so far but he usually does until he runs into Federer/Nadal/Djokovic. I would like to see him win a slam just to add some variety but I can't see him beating Djokovic in the semis.

David Ferrer also had a fairly easy win over Richard Gasquet but he has Djokovic in the next round.

Nadal should get past Berdych tonight while Federer will face del Potro. del Potro does have the game to beat Federer but I'm still not convinced he is at his best. I suspect we are looking at a Federer/Nadal semi-final.

The ladies matches are much more unpredictable. In the Viktoria Azarenka/Agnieszka Radwanska match Viktoria is the heavy favourite but I think Agnieszka has a real chance to score an upset. Both have been playing great and this one should go three sets. The other match features Caroline Wozniacki vs. Kim Clijsters. Kim should be the favourite here but she may have an ankle injury from her previous match and has not been playing her best tennis. Caroline hasn't been playing her best either but this is a great chance for her to finally beat one of the big four (Serena/Venus/Justine/Kim).

So all is right and normal in tennis land. The Top 4 mens seeds all pretty much kicked ass and were un-tested through to the semis. Nadal and Berdych had some amazing tennis but Nadal definitely stepped it up when he needed to. Murray's draw has been kind, it will be very interesting if he keeps his emotions together against Djokovic. I think that's really the only thing that's held him back from breaking through to win a slam. The Top 3 stay the same whether they are down a couple of sets, whereas Murray too easily get's downcast or starts shouting at his Mum in the players box

It looks like Lendl is the perfect fit for Murray as his new coach. It will be a huge challenge if Djokovic is on his game though. I want Murray to win, he needs a reward for his efforts to get better.

I think Federer has got Nadal this time around. Maybe Nadal will want some revenge after Federer crushed him at the Tour finals at the end of last year. Should be fantastic either way.

Usually there is a surprise in the Women's draw but really the best 4 players have stepped up. Kvitova, Azarenka, Clijsters and Sharapova. I would've expected Serena to have been there but she's north of 30 now and can't just expect to walk into a slam and take it anyomre, she's needs to play herself into some kind of form.

I hope the final is Clijsters vs Kvitova if only to take the grunting out of the equation for Womens tennis. Like I said before I'm used to Azarenka but I was finding Sharapova distracting against Lisicki. If it's actually possible, it seems like she's getting LOUDER. God, if it's an Azarenka vs Sharapova final, the media will just KILL them. They are both really strong competitors but the only way it will really stop is if other players step up and make formal complaints. It was good to see Radwanska at least talk about it abit, but it is very very hard to police because some players do make a noise when they are giving extra effort. It's really hurting the game though. There needs to be new rules in juniors to shut it down before it becomes too ingrained.

ANYWAY, I'd like to see Kvitova take the title. Her games gorgeous, she's young, she deserves the number one and I hope she dominates for awhile.

Congratulations to Australian Open Women's Champion 2012 - Victoria Azarenka

She kicked Sharapova's ass. 6-3 6-0 . Nice to see Hingis there too. She looks great.

From being down 0-2 Viktoria won twelve of the next thirteen games! Very impressive. In the second set I kept waiting for her to implode but it never happened.

Starting with Indian Wells last year Maria has really improved and has had some great runs but I think she will have trouble beating the very best. Her serve can still be a big liability and when it starts to fail her she really struggles. She can still win another slam but I think she will need a bit of luck with the draw to do so. She can't ask for a better chance than facing two first time finalists in a slam but was unable to defeat either of them.

I think that we are going to see the number one ranking change quite a bit this year. Azarenka can do well on all surfaces but we don't know how she will respond to the pressure of being number

one and Petra is right there behind her. Maria is in the mix too but she tends to play slightly fewer tournaments than the others so she will have a harder time accumulating the necessary points. Wozniacki used to be very consistent but after Wimbledon last year she has had a very rough patch, if she can regain that consistency she might get herself back to number one. Stosur has also been very up and down lately but if she can catch fire during the clay season she could take the number one ranking. Even Radwanska, mathematically, is in the mix but I don't think she has much of a shot, she's basically a poorer version of Wozniacki.

rialb said:

From being down 0-2 Viktoria won twelve of the next thirteen games! Very impressive. In the second set I kept waiting for her to implode but it never happened.

Yeah, she really held it together but I guess when everything in the match is breaking your way you have to be pretty positive. She couldn't have really expected to play any better than she did. When she's pressing forward, she's tough and she get's a really good rhythm going where she hardly misses.

Starting with Indian Wells last year Maria has really improved and has had some great runs but I think she will have trouble beating the very best. Her serve can still be a big liability and when it starts to fail her she really struggles. She can still win another slam but I think she will need a bit of luck with the draw to do so. She can't ask for a better chance than facing two first time finalists in a slam but was unable to defeat either of them.

Maria is awesome when she's on but there doesn't seem to be any other game plan than stay at the baseline and hit everything as hard as I possibly can. Her game does centre around her serve and when it goes awol so does her game. Both the slam finals she lost in the last year, her opponents have played exceptionally well and she really wasn't given any kind of chance to create a momentum shift, which is unusual in a tennis match. I think competitors know that if she gets a sniff of a chance, boy is she gonna take it. She's an awesome fighter.

I think that we are going to see the number one ranking change quite a bit this year. Azarenka can do well on all surfaces but we don't know how she will respond to the pressure of being number

one and Petra is right there behind her. Maria is in the mix too but she tends to play slightly fewer tournaments than the others so she will have a harder time accumulating the necessary points. Wozniacki used to be very consistent but after Wimbledon last year she has had a very rough patch, if she can regain that consistency she might get herself back to number one. Stosur has also been very up and down lately but if she can catch fire during the clay season she could take the number one ranking. Even Radwanska, mathematically, is in the mix but I don't think she has much of a shot, she's basically a poorer version of Wozniacki.

Hmm, I get the feeling Azarenka may thrive at Number 1 but it's all about consistency, which is what Caroline was able to do. Someone has to step up and week in and week out take titles and get to semis and finals in slams. Alot of the contenders have had real slumps where they can't win a match for months at a stretch ie Stosur. She has the game but the mental strength is missing. I think Kvitova, Sharapova and Azarenka will all be contesting for Number 1. It really seems to be not that important for the players though. It's all about winning slams now.

[Edited 1/29/12 0:56am]

Men's Finals just started. Number 1 Djokovic vs Number 2 Nadal.

Djokovic is probably favourite, especially as he beat Nadal in 6 finals in 2011. Hope it goes the distance.

Congratulations to Australian Open Men's Champion 2012 - Novak Djokovic

Go the distance? Wow, the longest Men's Grand Slam final ever. 5-7 6-4 6-2 6-7 7-5

They are just phenomenal athletes and competitors. Roll on the French Open!