Juniors to Seniors

LAURA ROBSON and Heather Watson are rapidly emerging in the WTA rankings and both players are considered as two of the biggest talents for the next decade but while some Grand Slam winning juniors make a comfortable transition onto the senior tour, others fail to make the same impact.

Grand Slam winning juniors and successful seniors

Martina Hingis (SUI) – won French Open 1993-94 and Wimbledon 1994

HINGIS became the youngest ever Grand Slam junior champion at the French Open in 1993 and the Swiss is still the youngest winner of the Wimbledon junior title at 13 years and 276 days. Less than a year later, Hingis took her first top-ten scalp when she defeated world No.5 Jana Novotna en route to her first tour final in Hamburg. Persistent injuries forced her to retire from the sport in 2001 and even though she failed to make much of an impression on her brief return to the tour in 2006, Hingis still retires with 43 WTA singles titles and 209 weeks at No.1.

Amelie Mauresmo (FRA) – won French Open and Wimbledon 1996

THE Frenchwoman took some time to establish herself in the highest echelons of the senior ranks and while she certainly isn't regarded as a teen supernova, Mauresmo fulfilled her promise with Australian Open and Wimbledon titles in 2006.

Justine Henin (BEL) – won French Open 1997

THE Belgian is another prime example of a player who has etched out a fruitful trade after success in the junior ranks. Henin won the French Open junior title in 1997 and less than two years later, she claimed her first WTA title on home-soil in Antwerp. Since then, Henin has won seven Grand Slam titles in singles and is regarded as one of the greatest clay-court exponents of all-time.

Jelena Jankovic (SRB) – won Australian Open 2001

JANKOVIC won the Australian Open junior title in 2001 and even though it took the Serb a while to reproduce this form in the senior ranks, she was the outstanding player of 2008. Despite failing to claim a Grand Slam title, she finished the year as world No.1 with titles in Rome, Beijing, Stuttgart and Moscow.

Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) – won Wimbledon 2006

IT took the Dane less than three years to crack the top-ten after claiming the junior title at Wimbledon. Wozniacki became the youngest year-end No.1 since Martina Hingis last year and even though the Dane is still without a Grand Slam title, Wozniacki claimed six WTA titles in 2010.

Victoria Azarenka (BLR) – won Australian Open and US Open 2005

THE Belarussian won the Australian Open and US Open junior titles in 2005 and is renowned as one of the best hard-court players on the tour. Azarenka's biggest title to date came in Miami in 2009, where she defeated Serena Williams in straight sets.

Nadia Petrova (RUS) – won French Open 1998

PETROVA is regularly tagged as an under-performer but the Russian still has a highly distinguished résumé in singles and doubles. Petrova reached the semi-finals of the French Open twice, made a career-high ranking in singles of No.3 and won the Tour Championships doubles title with Meghann Shaughnessy in 2005.

Grand Slam winning juniors and solid seniors

Virginie Razzano (FRA) – won Australian Open 1999 and French Open 2000

THE 27-year-old from Dijon has spent most of her senior career inside the top-100 but despite briefly breaking the top-20 in 2009, Razzano's career has ebbed and flowed and having peaked at a career-high of No.16 in 2009, the Frenchwoman dropped from the top-100 the following year. Despite breaking a chain of nine successive year-end finishes in the top-100, Razzano took a win over Maria Sharapova at Fed Cup level, which shows she might be coming back to the level which took her to finals in Dubai and Eastbourne and fourth-round performances at the French Open and Wimbledon in 2009.

Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) – won Wimbledon 1998

SREBOTNIK won the Wimbledon junior title in 1999 but the Slovenian was unfortunate to sustain a succession of injuries after a stellar 2008 season where she cracked the top-20 in singles. On her return to the tour, Srebotnik has struggled to find any semblance of her best form in singles but the 29-year-old is still active in doubles, where she has maintained a reputation as a world-class exponent in the fore-court.

Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) – won Australian Open 2002 and 2003

ZAHLAVOVA STRYCOVA defeated Maria Sharapova 6-0 7-5 en route to the Australian Open junior title in 2002 but since then, their respective careers have gone in different directions. However, the Czech seems to be on the up as she made her first tour final in Prague last year which took her to a career-high ranking of No.37 as well as third round appearances at Wimbledon and the Australian Open in the past year.

Vera Dushevina (RUS) – won Wimbledon 2002

AFTER a successful junior career, Dushevina broke the top-50 in singles at the age of 18 but even though the Russian has enjoyed a solid career, she hasn't been able to build on this initial promise.

Grand Slam winning juniors but struggling seniors

Lourdes Dominguez Lino (ESP) – won French Open 1999

AFTER winning the Roland Garros junior title in 1999, it took the Spaniard seven years to make the main-draw of a Grand Slam. Dominguez Lino reached a career-high of 40 in 2006, which was the same year she won her maiden WTA title in Bogota but despite these successes, the 29-year-old has spent most of her career in the lower echelons of the top-100, although she equalled her best ever Grand Slam showing at last year's US Open when she made the third round as a qualifier.

Aniko Kapros (HUN) – won Australian Open 2000

THE Hungarian won singles and doubles at the Australian Open in 2000 but despite initial success at senior level, especially at Grand Slam competition, Kapros failed to build on this early momentum. Kapros, at 18, upset Justine Henin in the first round of the French Open in 2002, which was followed by a third-round showing at Wimbledon the following year before reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open in 2004, where she defeated Nadia Petrova and Samantha Stosur en route to her best-ever Grand Slam performance. However, Kapros dropped out of the top-100 after a first-round exit at Melbourne Park the following year and failed to re-enter into the leading ranks. After a succession of injuries, Kapros announced her retirement last year.

Michaella Krajicek (NED) – won US Open 2004

KRAJICEK made the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2007 but the Dutchwoman was set back by a succession of wrist and knee injuries the following year and hasn't made the main-draw of a Grand Slam since losing in the first-round at Wimbledon in 2008.

Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) – won Wimbledon and US Open 2003

LIKEWISE, Flipkens is another promising junior who has been beset by injuries during her senior career. The Belgian made back-to-back third round appearances at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2009 but despite reaching a career-high ranking of No.59 last year, the 24-year-old was aggrieved by a recurring wrist injury which required surgery during the off-season.

Kristina Kucova (SVK) – won US Open 2007

THE Slovak has so far failed to crack the top-100 and despite being ranked at No.225, there have been some promising signs as the former US Open junior champion scored her first top-50 win at the GDF Suez Open in Paris, defeating Ekaterina Makarova in the first-round. Kucova clearly favours fast surfaces, further illustrated by a second-round appearance at Wimbledon in 2009, and this remains her only Grand Slam main-draw victory to date.

Justine Henin - a statistical tribute

JUST eighteen months after announcing her return to the tour, persistent elbow injuries have forced Justine Henin to re-retire from competitive action. The Belgian made her decision after a third-round loss to Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Australian Open.

Win-loss record

Overall
527-116 (82.0%)

By year

1996 – 1-1

1997 – 11-2

1998 – 20-4

1999 – 33-10

2000 – 36-15

2001 – 57-18

2002 – 52-21

2003 – 75-11

2004 – 35-4

2005 – 34-5

2006 – 60-8

2007 – 63-4

2008 – 16-4

2010 – 32-8

2011 – 2-1

By surface

Hard outdoor – 226-44 (83.7%)

Hard indoor/carpet – 93-32 (74.4%)

Clay/indoor clay – 155-29 (84.2%)

Grass – 53-11 (82.8%)

By tournament

Grand Slam – 144-28 (83.7%)

Tour Championships – 13-5 (72.2%)

Tier I/Premier Mandatory – 116-25 (82.3%)

Other WTA events – 179-44 (80.3%)

Olympic Games – 6-0 (100%)

Fed Cup – 12-2 (85.7%)

ITF events – 57-12 (82.6%)

Titles

By year

1999 (1) – Antwerp

2001 (3) – Gold Coast, Canberra, Rosmalen

2002 (2) – Berlin, Linz

2003 (8) – Dubai, Charleston, Berlin, Roland Garros, San Diego, Toronto, US Open, Zurich

2004 (5) – Sydney, Australian Open, Dubai, Indian Wells, Olympic Games

2005 (4) – Charleston, Warsaw, Berlin, Roland Garros

2006 (6) – Sydney, Dubai, Roland Garros, Eastbourne, New Haven, Tour Championships

2007 (10) – Dubai, Doha, Warsaw, Roland Garros, Eastbourne, Toronto, US Open, Stuttgart, Zurich, Tour Championships

2008 (2) – Sydney, Antwerp

2010 (2) – Stuttgart, Rosmalen

Total – 43

By surface

Hard outdoor - 19

Hard indoor/carpet - 7

Clay/indoor clay - 13

Grass - 4

By tournament

Grand Slam - 7

Tour Championships - 2

Tier I/Premier Mandatory - 11

Other WTA events - 22

Olympic Games - 1

Finalist

2001 (3) – Wimbledon, Hawaii, Filderstadt

2002 (4) – Gold Coast, Antwerp, Amelia Island, Rome

2003 (3) – Rosmalen, Leipzig, Filderstadt

2005 (1) – Toronto

2006 (4) – Australian Open, Berlin, Wimbledon, US Open

2007 (1) – Miami

2010 (2) – Brisbane, Australian Open

Total – 18

Win-loss record in final – 43-18 (70.5%)

Record in Grand Slams

Australian Open – 38-8 (W 2004, F 2006 and 2010, SF 2003, QF 2002 and 2008)

French Open – 41-5 (W 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007, SF 2001)

Wimbledon – 30-8 (F 2001 and 2006, SF 2002, 2003 and 2007)

US Open – 35-7 (W 2003 and 2007), F 2006)

7 W, 5 F, 5 SF, 2 QF, 8 R4, 1 R3, 3 R2, 4 R1

Overall – 144-28 (83.7%)

Record at Tour Championships

13-5 (72.2%) - W 2006 and 2007, SF 2003, QF 2001 and 2002 (72.2%)

Record in Grand Slams and Tour Championships combined

157-33 (82.6%)

Record in Tier I/Premier Mandatory Tournaments

By tournament

Indian Wells – 14-4

Miami – 20-8

Charleston – 14-1

Berlin – 28-4

Rome – 4-1

Madrid – 0-1

San Diego – 5-0

Montreal/Toronto – 21-4

Moscow – 0-1

Zurich – 10-1

Overall – 116-25 (82.3%)

By surface

Hard outdoor – 60-16 (78.9%)

Hard indoor/carpet – 10-2 (83.3%)

Clay/indoor clay – 46-7 (86.8%)

Record in other WTA Tournaments (Tier II, Tier III, Tier IV, Tier V, Premier, International Tournaments

179-44 (80.3%)

By surface

Hard outdoor – 73-13 (84.9%)

Hard indoor/carpet – 46-19 (70.8%)

Clay/indoor clay – 37-9 (80.4%)

Grass – 23-3 (88.5%)

Record for Belgium

18-2 (90%)

By surface

Hard outdoor – 8-0 (100%)
 Hard indoor/carpet – 4-1 (80%)

Clay/indoor clay – 6-1 (85.7%)

Record on ITF circuit

Titles won

1997 – Le Touquet ($10k), Koksijde ($10k)

1998 – Gelos ($10k), Grenelefe ($25k), Ramat Hasharon ($25k)

1999 – Reims ($25k)

2000 – Liege ($50k)

By year

1996 – 1-1

1997 – 11-2

1998 – 20-4

1999 – 17-4

2000 – 8-1

Overall – 57-12 (82.6%)

By surface

Hard (outdoor) – 10-0 (100%)

Hard (indoor) – 14-5 (73.7%)

Clay – 33-7 (82.5%)

Hard indoor/carpet – 4-1 (80%)

Clay/indoor clay – 6-1 (85.7%)

Record against top-ten opposition:

1999 – 0-1

2000 – 0-8

2001 – 3-9

2002 – 5-13

2003 – 16-9

2004 – 8-1

2005 – 9-2

2006 – 16-7

2007 – 22-1

2008 – 2-2

2010 – 5-3

Overall – 86-56 (60.6%)

Top ten wins by year

2001 – V. Williams-2 (Berlin)

2002 – Dokic-8 (Amelia Island), Capriati-2 and S. Williams-5 (Berlin), Clijsters-4 (Rome), Seles-4 (Wimbledon)

2003 – Davenport-10 (Australian Open), Myskina-10 and Capriati-6 (Dubai), S. Williams-1 (Charleston), Mauresmo-6 and Clijsters-3 (Berlin), Rubin-8, S.Williams-1 and Clijsters-2 (French Open), Clijsters-2 (San Diego), Myskina-10, Capriati-7 and Clijsters-1 (US Open), Dementieva-8 (Filderstadt), Myskina-8 and Capriati-5 (Tour Championships)

2004 – Rubin-10 and Mauresmo-4 (Sydney), Davenport-5 and Clijsters-2 (Australian Open), Myskina-5 and Davenport-4 (Indian Wells), Myskina-3 and Mauresmo-2 (Olympic Games)

2005 – Molik-8, Davenport-1 and Dementieva-5 (Charleston), Kuznetsova-7 (Warsaw), Sharapova-2 (Berlin), Kuznetsova-7, Sharapova-2 and Petrova-9 (French Open), Mauresmo-3 (Toronto)

2006 – Davenport-1 and Sharapova-4 (Australian Open), Sharapova-4 (Dubai), Dementieva-9 and Petrova-4 (Fed Cup), Kuznetsova-10 and Mauresmo-1 (Berlin), Clijsters-2 and Kuznetsova-10 (French Open), Clijsters-2 (Eastbourne), Clijsters-2 (Wimbledon), Kuznetsova-7 (New Haven), Hingis-7, Petrova-5, Sharapova-2 and Mauresmo-1 (Tour Championships)

2007 – Kuznetsova-5 and Mauresmo-3 (Dubai), Jankovic-10 and Kuznetsova-5 (Doha), Petrova-7 (Miami), Jankovic-7 (Warsaw), Jankovic-6 (Berlin), S. Williams-8, Jankovic-5 and Ivanovic-7 (French Open), Mauresmo-4 (Eastbourne), S. Williams-8 (Wimbledon), Petrova-9 and Jankovic-3 (Toronto), S. Williams-9 and Kuznetsova-4 (US Open), Jankovic-3 (Stuttgart), Chakvetadze-7, Bartoli-10, Jankovic-3, Ivanovic-4 and Sharapova-6 (Tour Championships)

2008 – Ivanovic-4 and Kuznetsova-2 (Sydney)

2010 – Dementieva-5 (Australian Open), Dementieva-6 and Wozniacki-2 (Miami), Jankovic-7 and Stosur-10 (Stuttgart)

Record against top-ten opposition at Grand Slams:

Australian Open – 6-7 (46.2%)

French Open – 11-2 (84.6%)

Wimbledon – 4-7 (36.4%)

US Open – 4-3 (57.1%)

Overall – 25-19 (56.8%)

Overall record against top-ten opposition at Grand Slams and Tour Championships combined:

Overall – 36-23 (61.0%)

Record against top-ten opposition by surface

Hard (outdoor) – 35-22 (61.4%)

Hard (indoor) – 13-15 (46.4%)

Clay – 31-11 (73.8%)

Grass – 7-8 (46.7%)

Record against top-twenty opposition:

1999 – 1-4

2000 – 1-9

2001 – 10-14

2002 – 14-15

2003 – 26-10

2004 – 11-3

2005 – 13-3

2006 – 30-7

2007 – 36-3

2008 – 2-3

2010 – 12-5

Overall – 156-76 (67.2%)

Record against top-twenty opposition at Grand Slams:

Australian Open – 10-7

French Open – 15-3

Wimbledon – 9-7

US Open – 10-7

Overall – 44-24 (64.7%)

H2H records

Head-to-head record with current top-ten

Caroline Wozniacki 1-0

Vera Zvonareva 6-0

Kim Clijsters 12-13

Serena Williams 6-8

Venus Williams 2-7

Samantha Stosur 1-1

Francesca Schiavone 7-1

Jelena Jankovic 10-0

Victoria Azarenka 0-0

Elena Dementieva 10-2

H2H over current top-ten – 55-32 (63.2%)

Head-to-head record with Grand Slam champions

Kim Clijsters 12-13

Serena Williams 6-8

Venus Williams 2-7

Francesca Schiavone 7-1

Svetlana Kuznetsova 16-3

Maria Sharapova 7-3

Ana Ivanovic 6-0

Amelie Mauresmo 8-6

Anastasia Myskina 8-2

Jennifer Capriati 5-2

Lindsay Davenport 7-5

Mary Pierce 4-1

Martina Hingis 2-2

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 0-1

Monica Seles 3-4

Conchita Martinez 8-0

H2H over Grand Slam champions – 101-58 (63.5%)

Other noteworthy head-to-head records

Nadia Petrova 14-2

Patty Schnyder 8-1

Best wins by score

60 60 over Aurelie Vedy – F Gelos (April 1998)

60 60 over Olivia Lukaszewicz – R1 Australian Open (January 2004)

60 60 over Aiko Nakamura – R3 Indian Wells (March 2006)

60 60 over Marion Bartoli – RR Tour Championships (November 2007)

60 61 over Nathaly Tijssen – R1 Koksijde (August 1997)

60 61 over Katalin Miskolczi – Q1 Reims (March 1999)

60 61 over Anna Kournikova – R2 Australian Open (January 2002)

60 61 over Patty Schnyder – SF Berlin (May 2005)

60 61 over Meng Yuan – R1 Wimbledon (June 2006)

61 60 over Laurence Combes – SF Gelos (April 1998)

61 60 over Sonya Jeyaseelan – R2 Gold Coast (January 2001)

61 60 over Sarah Pitkowski-Malcor – R1 Wimbledon (June 2001)

61 60 over Conchita Martinez – QF Wimbledon (June 2001)

61 60 over Janette Husarova – R2 Sydney (January 2003)

61 60 over Lina Krasnoroutskaya – F Toronto (August 2003)

61 60 over Conchita Martinez – QF Dubai (February 2004)

61 60 over Nicole Pratt – R3 Olympic Games (August 2004)

61 60 over Maria Kirilenko – R3 Berlin (May 2006)

61 60 over Shahar Peer – R4 US Open (September 2006)

61 60 over Zheng Jie – SF Australian Open (January 2010)

61 61 over Barbara Rosenberger – R2 Athens (May 1999)

61 61 over Joannette Kruger – QF Gold Coast (January 2001)

61 61 over Dally Randriantefy – R3 French Open (May 2003)

61 61 over Eleni Daniilidou – R2 San Diego (July 2003)

61 61 over Anastasia Myskina – SF Indian Wells (March 2004)

61 61 over Mary Pierce – F French Open (June 2005)

61 61 over Tatjana Malek – R2 Berlin (May 2007)

60 62 over Stephanie Content – Q1 Joue-Les-Tours (Oct 1998)

60 62 over Lenka Nemeckova – Q2 Hobart (Jan 2000)

60 62 over Nadejda Ostrovskaya – R2 Cergy Pontoise (December 2000)

60 62 over Nadia Petrova – QF San Diego (July 2003)

60 62 over Eleni Daniilidou – QF Dubai (February 2007)

60 62 over Ekaterina Makarova – R3 US Open (August 2007)

60 62 over Dinara Safina – R4 US Open (August 2007)

60 62 over Yung-Jan Chan – R2 Berlin (May 2008)

62 60 over Angeles Montolio – SF Reims (March 1999)

62 60 over Francesca Lubiani – R2 Palermo (July 2000)

62 60 over Evie Dominikovic – R1 Hawaii (September 2001)

62 60 over Katarina Srebotnik – R2 Australian Open (January 2003)

62 60 over Tamarine Tanasugarn – R3 Miami (March 2003)

62 60 over Elena Dementieva – Fed Cup (April 2006)

62 60 over Kaia Kanepi – QF Sydney (January 2008)

Firsts and lasts

First top-100 win – def. Jana Kandarr 6-3 6-0 (Joue-Les-Tours, Oct 1998)

First top-50 win – def. Miriam Oremans 5-7 7-5 63 (Fed Cup, April 1999)

First top-20 win – def. Anna Kournikova 7-6 6-4 (Philadelphia, Nov 1999)

First top-10 win – def. Venus Williams 6-1 6-4 (Berlin, May 2001)

First No.1 win – def. Serena Williams 6-3 6-4 (Charleston, April 2003)

First ITF title – Le Touquet (May 1997)

First WTA title – Antwerp (May 1999)

First Grand Slam title – French Open (June 2003)

First professional match – vs. Laura Frias (ESP) in Palma, November 1996. Won 3-6 6-3 6-4

First WTA match – vs. Lubomira Bacheva (BUL) in Antwerp, May 1999. Won 6-2 6-1

First Grand Slam match – vs. Mashona Washington (USA) at French Open qualifying, May 1999. Won 6-3 6-1

First Grand Slam main-draw win – vs. Kristina Brandi (PUR) at the French Open, May 1999 – 6-4 6-2

First Grand Slam match as direct-entrant – vs. Amelie Mauresmo (FRA) at the US Open, August 2001. Won 6-1 6-4

Last top-100 win – def. Elena Baltacha 6-1 6-3 (Australian Open 2011)

Last top-50 win – def. Nadia Petrova 6-1 6-4 (Wimbledon 2010)

Last top-20 win – def. Nadia Petrova 6-1 6-4 (Wimbledon 2010)

Last top-10 win – def. Samantha Stosur 6-4 2-6 6-1 (Stuttgart 2010)

Last No.1 win – def. Amelie Mauresmo 6-4 6-3 (Tour Championships 2006)

Last WTA title – Rosmalen (June 2010)

Last Grand Slam title – US Open (September 2007)

Last win – vs. Elena Baltacha (GBR) at the Australian Open, January 2011. Lost 6-1 6-3

Last professional match – vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) at the Australian Open, January 2011. Lost 6-4 7-6

First week round-up from Melbourne Park

A new champion will emerge at Melbourne Park and it is still difficult to pick a probable winner at this stage. No.1 seed Caroline Wozniacki and No.2 seed Vera Zvonareva have both progressed to the fourth round without too many  wobbles and No.3 seed and arguable pre-competition favourite Kim Clijsters is yet to drop a set. Venus Williams and Justine Henin were the only major casualties of the first week of competition.

High drama: TO some fans, women's tennis might be running at a bit of a low ebb but the crowds at Melbourne Park have already been treated to more than a fair share of dramatic matches, none more so than Venus Williams's second-round encounter with Sandra Zahlavova from Czech Republic.

Zahlavova won the first set in the tiebreak but there looked to be some doubt as to whether Venus would be able to continue, after she sustained a groin injury when reaching for an overhead in the last point of the first set.

After a lengthy injury time-out, Venus re-emerged and despite moving tentatively, the seven-time Grand Slam champion drew on her experience to take the second set 6-0. Zahlavova fought hard but her focus and intensity continued to drop as Venus showed the fighting spirit more readily associated with her younger sister. In a most improbable match, Venus eventually prevailed 6-7 6-0 6-4.

French Open champion Francesca Schiavone had a tough opening match against Arantxa Parra Santonja and the Italian was forced to come back from the brink against Canadian No.1 Rebecca Marino in the second round. Schiavone was two points from defeat at 7-6 in the third set but the gutsy Italian rallied back to win 9-7 in the decider on the Margaret Court Arena.

Ekaterina Makarova has been the queen of the long-haul this week as the Eastbourne champion battled into the second-week of a Grand Slam for the first time. The Russian upset Ana Ivanovic in the first round, winning 3-6 6-4 10-8 before defeating last year's quarter-finalist Nadia Petrova 8-6 in the third round.

Two out of two for team GB: ELENA BALTACHA and Anne Keothavong both played to form by reaching the second round. On paper, Baltacha looked to have a fairly reasonable draw but the Scotswoman was put to the test by Jamie Hampton from the USA. Baltacha, who reached the third round last year, came from a set down to progress 3-6 6-4 7-5 but the British No.1 was no match for Justine Henin, who was the comfortable winner in their second-round contest.

A succession of injuries and poor form caused Keothavong to slide away from the top-100 but the British No.2 scored her first main-draw win in more than two years as she took a 6-4 7-5 victory over Grand Slam débutante Arina Rodionova from Russia to seal her return back to the top-100.

As well as claiming her first victory at this level of competition since 2008, Keothavong must have gained an extra slice of satisfaction as the former British No.1 lost a tense match to Arina's older sister Anastasia at Wimbledon last year

There's no love lost between Keothavong and the Rodionova clan. After the match, Keothavong was in a rather candid mood as she commented: 'Well, they're both, you know they are what they are and everyone kind of knows that. How can I say this diplomatically?'

Keothavong took a set from her friend Andrea Petkovic in the second round but the seeded German won 6-0 in the third set.

Bagels to go: LESS than two years ago, Tathiana Garbin defeated Marion Bartoli on home-soil at the French Open but the Italian veteran, who announced her retirement from singles at the end of last year, bowed out from the singles draw without registering a single game against the Frenchwoman in the first round.

Likewise, Rennae Stubbs also called time on her illustrious career but the Aussie favourite failed to make an impact on her farewell appearance. Much was expected of her partnership with French Open champion Francesca Schiavone but the newly formed team were bundled out by Michaella Krajicek and Petra Kvitova. The Dutch-Czech pairing, who weren't even born when Stubbs made her Melbourne Park debut in 1989, prevailed 6-0 7-5.

Stubbs might continue to play in Fed Cup competitions but if not, the 39-year-old retires with 60 WTA titles to her name including four Grand Slam titles.

Call the trainer: INJURIES are all part of the parcel of being a tennis player but it seems as though the medical set-up at Melbourne Park have been in even higher demand this year.

The most noticeable casualty was Venus Williams, who sustained a groin injury in the first-set tiebreak of her second round clash with Sandra Zahlavova and while Venus fought back to progress in three sets, she was unable to recover sufficiently for her third round match. A teary Venus was forced to retire for the first time in a Grand Slam.

Justine Henin is back on the tour but the clay-court specialist from Belgium is still struggling with the elbow injury which forced her to miss the US Open last year. Henin, who still spends two hours of day on rehabilitation exercises to strength her elbow, admits she's not free of pain yet but at the same time, the former champion didn't use it as an excuse for her third-round loss to Svetlana Kuznetsova from Russia.

Former quarter-finalist Marion Bartoli was tipped for a strong showing but the 26-year-old suffered a calf muscle strain in her second round loss to Vesna Manasieva from Russia and the former Wimbledon finalist will be sidelined for at least six weeks.

French Open champion Francesca Schiavone has been struggling with a groin injury in the build-up to Melbourne Park and the 30-year-old Italian might not be at her most healthy either as she was sick after a marathon second round encounter with Rebecca Marino from Canada.

Yanina Wickmayer and Patty Schnyder also put their early exits down to illness.

US tennis in decline: WITH reigning champion Serena Williams absent and Venus Williams forced to retire with injury, this year's Australian Open provided something of preview to the years ahead when the Williams sisters hang up their rackets. Much was expected of Bethanie Mattek-Sands but the in-form American No.3 fell to Arantxa Rus in the first round while much-hyped Melanie Oudin is nowhere near the form which took her to the last-eight at the US Open in 2009. For the first time in the open era at Melbourne Park, there will be no US interest in the second week of competition.

Aussie hopes disappear: SAMANTHA STOSUR and Jarmila Groth were highly touted in the build-up to the Australian Open but neither were firing on all cylinders. Stosur played an unusually tentative match in the third round, where she fell to Petra Kvitova and Groth, who won the warm-up event in Hobart, went down in three sets to Yanina Wickmayer in the first round.

Alicia Molik has been struggling for wins at ITF level so she did well to defeat Roberta Vinci in the first round but the former top-ten player lost to Nadia Petrova in a one-sided affair. Likewise, Jelena Dokic scored a first round win over Zuzana Ondraskova but failed to back this up in the second round.

Débuts at Melbourne Park

Début Grand Slam appearance

At the age of 28, Junri Namigata will be making her first appearance in the main-draw of a Grand Slam. The Japanese fell in the third round of qualifying at Wimbledon and the US Open last year but a strong end of season showing, including a good performance on home-soil in a 75k ITF event in Toyota elevated the Japanese No.3 to a career-high ranking of No.112, thus sealing her berth in the main-draw.

Two players have made their first main-draw appearance via qualifying. Arina Rodionova, the younger sister of Anastasia, defeated Anne Kremer and Zuzana Kucova en route to the main-draw while Lesya Tsurenko from Ukraine dashed the hopes of Heather Watson in the second qualifying round before defeating her experienced compatriot Mariya Koryttseva in the final round.

Jamie Hampton also qualified for the main-draw although she received a wild-card into the main-draw of the US Open last year.

Début Grand Slam appearance by direct acceptance;

PRIOR to 2010, Andrea Hlavackova was perhaps better known for her exploits in doubles but the flat-hitting Czech has gained direct-entry for her first Grand Slam. Hlavackova qualified for the main-draw at Wimbledon last year, where she defeated Noppawan Lertcheewakarn in the first round before falling to eventual finalist Vera Zvonareva.

Rebecca Marino made the second round of the US Open as a qualifier last year and the Canadian gave Venus Williams a stern test on Arthur Ashe court. The 20-year-old, who has a big serve and forehand, went on to defeat Marion Bartoli in Quebec City, which was followed by an 18-match win streak on the ITF circuit.

Zhang Shuai came to prominence when she upset world No.1 Dinara Safina in Beijing in 2009 and the Chinese, who has made two Grand Slams in the past as a qualifier, will be contesting her first main-draw at Melbourne Park.

Alison Riske, who gained a wild-card into Wimbledon last year and Christine McHale, who narrowly missed making the cut by merit at last year's US Open, are also making their débuts via direct acceptance.

Début Grand Slam appearance by wild-card;

17-year-old Caroline Garcia was awarded the French wild-card and this will be her first appearance in the main-draw of a Grand Slam. Garcia, who made the quarter-finals of the US Open juniors last year, already has three top-100 wins to her credit in senior competitions (Sandra Zahlavova, Alize Cornet and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova).

Lauren Davis, ranked No.4 in juniors, gained the US wild-card after defeating Coco Vandeweghe in the play-off final and she has a tough baptism in the main-draw, facing Samantha Stosur in the first round. Davis, who trains at the Chris Evert Academy, has won her last 18 matches on the junior circuit with titles at the prestigious Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments as well as an eleven match win streak on the ITF circuit.

Other notables;

MIRJANA LUCIC'S off-court struggles have been well-documented but the Croatian is now fully focused on her tennis again and she re-entered the top-100 last October after a ten-year absence. Lucic, who won the doubles at the Australian Open back in 1998, is reaping the benefits of her persistence and hard work as she has gained direct-entry into a Grand Slam for the first time since Wimbledon in 2000. In her last appearance in Melbourne Park eleven years ago, Lucic lost in the first round to No.1 seed Martina Hingis.

Another veteran to stage a resurgence in the past twelve months is Hungary's Greta Arn, who won her second WTA title last week in Auckland and the 31-year-old has gained direct-entry into Melbourne Park for the first time since 2003 where she lost to Nadia Petrova in the first round.

Laura Pous-Tio, having last made the main-draw cut in 2007, has gained direct-entry for a Grand Slam after a four-year absence. Likewise, Zuzana Ondraskova will be returning to the main-draw for the first time since Wimbledon in 2007.

Somewhat surprisingly, Bethanie Mattek-Sands will be making her Australian Open main-draw debut after falling in qualifying in 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010.