For our money, it was one of the best Grand Slam openers to a new year in a long time.  A look back at some of the more sublime - and the sillier - moments from the Australian Open, starting with....

The Finals: 

For once, not one but TWO great finals, Roger and Andy for the manly men and Serena and Justine for the women.  Not least because they were the two players who had played the best for two weeks to emerge from the draws.  It's always nice when you get the hottest players at that moment getting to the finals of a Slam.  Not that the best don't always get there, once in a while we have some oddities.  No oddities this year, just good stuff from the players.

And one of the weirder things to emerge  was the notable absence of two notables:  Del Potro didn't even survive the Round of 16, while Nadal went out in the quarters.  But Cilic was on the move, we all knew that from the end of last year.  After he got by Del Potro, you had to like his chances of getting by Roddick; no real upset there, at least in my book. 

Did Federer really play that great of a final?  Or did he somehow manage to fool Murray into thinking he was?   A few months ago I nicknamed Andy Murray the Massager, because that's what I felt he was doing waayy too much of with the ball.  Now we could call him Murray the Mystifier, because for the life of me I don't get why the guy enjoys the baseline so much.  Hell, not even the baseline!  As the graphics showed, he wasn't even near the baseline in a lot of the rallies.  He was behind it while Federer hugged it like it was his twin daughters. 

Is Murray so in love with the intricacies of point construction that he forgets how to win the bloody points?  The best thing about the final was when I saw Murray in tears, that says to me the guy WILL get it one day, but not on this Sunday.  He really does want it though.  And with all those guys coaching him you'd expect they could find a plan for Andy.   

Roger on the other hand, like the commercial using his image, is one free-range shark for sure, and does he ever know when to strike.  When will Murray learn this?  Will he learn it?

In passing we need to mention Davydenko's absolutely lights-out brilliant play in the first set of his quarterfinal match with Federer.  It pretty much left me in a puddle of nervous energy on the floor, my hand was already reaching for the on/off button.  This was not going to be my man Roger's day, and I didn't want to see him annihilated again, for a third time in a row, by this little guy who JUST DOESN'T MISS.  It was just awesome play. 

I remembered what Federer says he says to himself at moments like this:  Don't panic.  Easy for him to say, so let me panic for you, Roger.  I kept the tv on, Roger spent a lot of time ransacking the strings on his racquet as he tried to work his way back into the match.  Surely no man would attempt to whip Roger Federer three times in a row and live to tell about it, but this looked like the day. 

Federer clung to life in the match and withstood the onslaught, then carved his way back into the match.  As he grew stronger, Davydenko started to slip.  And, well, you know the drill from there. 

- - - - - - -

A number of players came into the Australian Open with chances to start their new year off right, but failed to connect.

Maria Sharapova lost a tough opener to Maria Kirilenko.  She used to own her, once upon a time.  Frankly I was a bit shocked at how sketchy her preparation looked.  Sharapova didn't play the Brisbane tune-up event, probably a mistake according to observers.  Supposedly her shoulder was ok and she could play but I keep getting the sense she's not fully 100% back into her play.  Her game doesn't look nearly as big to me now as it did a few years ago, apart from the serving woes.  She doesn't get the same stick on the forehand.  Even her dress -  a blue-green wispy thing with an overabundance of straps that reminded me of mermaids and being underwater - seemed to reflect the Sharapova woes. 

Ana Ivanovic came by, basically to say hello I guess,  then lost rather early as well, to that wisp of a girl, Gisella Dulko, so her woes continue.  As I watched her chase her service toss all over God's creation, I thought to myself:  Ana needed more baseball in her early life, down there in the swimming pools of Serbia.  She needed to play sports where you get to throw things a lot.  That would have helped her service toss.  She's a big girl and she should have been chucking lots of stuff as a kid.  She appears instead to be surprisingly unathletic. 

There is nothing unathletic about Rafa Nadal.  But sadly, his knee going crunch has an ominous ring to it.  They poo-pooed it, not the same knee problem as before, but still.  A rotten omen for the year.  I don't like the look of these knees at all, and I for one will be holding my breath for him this year. 

The weirdest and funniest moment was early on and involves the "let-me-show-you-my-beautiful-bod" moment from Marcos Baghdatis.  After upsetting Ferrer in the second round, the Cypriot whipped his shirt off to reveal a lovely defoliation job, but little else.  Why would you go through the angst of doing that - really, it was probably more like deforestation in his case - and then show the world you haven't spent ANY time in the gym?  His body looks puffy.  All that work and not much to show for it, guy.  I'll personally pay you to keep it on next time. 

These days not only are the games of the players very hot, their physiques are too.  One would be well-advised to remember that before whipping clothes off.

Isn’t the first major of the year is supposed to wake us up? And wake the players up? Years ago, when the Aussie Open was played in December, it got lost, crunched into the year-end sporting formalities. The January move helped in so many ways and still does. Some tennis powers want to move the alarm-clock tourney later in the year for reasons financial and physical; but will it do any better to rouse us in February or March?  Some players want a longer time off; they want tennis to be chiseled into a shorter season. They can get some rest, some much-desired off-court training or even some on-court revamping. Maybe have a relationship?  In Australia, we certainly have had a growing spectator following, which may be partially because of the summer event of the Open. These fans and players count. Millions of players and millions of dollars in revenue are at stake. Will the audience show up in Oz’s Autumn? When school starts up?
Does Tennis, as a brand, need to be more specific at the same time that baseball, basketball and football seasons are continuing to expand in number of teams, number of games and the number of playoffs?
I would like the Australian Open to stay where it is on the calendar. Not as a traditionalist, but as a pragmatist and competitor. I like the early challenge, I like to see the players progress (or not). Can they pace themselves? I like the potential for unpredictability….even though….
Our opening event to a new tennis year and decade, to me, went by the numbers….
But there were a few highlights:
Justine Henin is back: Inspired and inspiring some of the smaller players - anyone under 5’9” - and the one-handers. I am part of both categories.
The only wakeup call was what China sent to Melbourne: their female footprint on the sport and the Plexicushion. 
Some moments that stood out: Nadal tried and hurt; Federer flowed without tears; Davydenko’s light going dim after one shot; Serena grunted without death threats; Venus shrugged and smiled. Murray was ready and got put in his place at the end; Roddick’s shoulder.
Lots of tickets were sold. Many hits on-line. Business is good.
And we can now go week-to-week preparing for the short clay court season and Roland Garros. Here at TennisDiary we might get our calendiary to work. And we look forward to more writers’ blogs, comments and hits. On and off the court.

Roger Federer rolled over Andy Murray in straight sets in the Australian Open final on Sunday, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(11). With the impressive victory, Federer increases his all-time Grand Slam record with his sixteenth major title.

Many felt that Murray had a legitimate shot at defeating the world number one, as he has held the advantage in their career meetings by a 6-4 margin coming into the match. After losing to Federer in the finals of the 2008 U.S. Open, a more physically and emotionally mature Murray seemed poised to at least push him to a fourth or fifth set this time around.

Instead, Federer was his usually dominant self and managed to thwart Murray's attempt to become the first British man to win a Grand Slam since Fred Perry in 1936.

After the match Federer was quick to diffuse any talk of mind-games leading up to their encounter in the finals. Federer had joked that it had been 150,000 years or so since a Brit had won a Slam.

"Well, I think it got exaggerated. The on‑court interview, I don't take those serious anyway. If you think it was a mental thing, it was not the case, you know. But you ask me a question, I'll give you a straight answer. That's how the press conference was after the Tsonga match. It's not an easy thing to do to win your first Grand Slam. That's not mental, you know, trying to screw with his head, you know. It's just a tough thing, you know."

Federer has not won the Aussie Open since 2007 and his victory on Sunday will spark talk of the potential for him to achieve a Grand Slam in 2010 - winning all four major titles in one calendar year. With Rafael Nadal out for four weeks with a knee injury that is seemingly becoming chronically debilitating, Federer could repeat at the French Open in May. Only a healthy Nadal stands in his way in Paris. He is still the runaway favorite at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, so those are still more than attainable.

When asked how he feels about the possibility of attaining a Grand Slam this year, Federer had a lengthy and revealing reply:

"Look, I mean, it's not something I've ever put in my mind that this is something I want to achieve. I'll still go and play the smaller tournaments, you know, the Masters 1000s, the ones we're supposed to play. I try to give my best everywhere I go to, because I think there's not only the Grand Slams."

"I won't just put the entire calendar just around trying to win the calendar Grand Slam. I mean, it's something if it happens, it does, it's great; but it's not something that's like my number one goal. Not at all. It's the same as I haven't put a number on how many Grand Slams I want to try to win. Whatever happens happens."

"You know, I really want to try to enjoy, you know, my end to my career, because I've reached already so many goals I thought were never possible. I really want to just enjoy the tour, and that's what I'm doing at the moment. Obviously as a dad as well even more so."

Despite emerging challengers in recent years from Nadal to Novak Djokovic, from Murray to Juan Martin Del Potro, Federer has managed to consistently add to his growing legacy. He might not own the best record against all of his foes, and they may beat him at smaller events - but Federer has found a way to remain the uncontested greatest player in the game of tennis.

Ladies and gentlemen, play is suspended due to...fireworks.

Never before have I seen a professional tennis match, or any other sporting event for that matter, delayed due to fireworks overhead, but such was the case on Tuesday in Melbourne.

January 26th is Australia Day commemorating the 1788 arrival of British Fleets in Sydney. To celebrate, one of the most amazing fireworks displays I have ever witnessed was on hand in the middle of the second set between Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal.

The delay lasted 10 minutes during which play was stopped. Both players sat around trying their best not to get distracted during the visually impressive stoppage with Murray leading 6-3, 2-3, on serve in the second set.

The fireworks continued on court afterwards, as an inspired Spaniard would win the first three points on Murray's serve before breaking him to move ahead 4-2. Murray returned the favor on Nadal's next service game, breaking easily to get back on serve.

Later, with the match tied 5-5, Murray had three break point opportunities that he could not convert on. Each time, Nadal would come up with a great display of talent with either a reflex volley at net, an ace (his first of the match) or a cross-court shot that Murray simply could not reach in time. He would manage to make the crucial hold. In the next game, Murray would hang-on to send the two-hour match to a second set tiebreak. It was a crucial moment for Nadal.

It was all Murray in the tiebreak however. He would never allow Nadal even a chance to get into it and raced out to 3-0, and then 6-1 leads before taking it 7-2. Murray now held a stranglehold on the match up two sets to none.

Early in the third set with Nadal serving at 0-1, he would tweak his right knee on a seemingly innocent play where he stopped suddenly after making a routine shot. It is a move that Nadal makes countless times in each match. At the conclusion of the point and with the score at 15-15, he would immediately jog to his seat and call for the trainer and a subsequent injury timeout. The sight of Nadal getting his knee treated must have been disturbing for his coaching team, as the Spaniard was supposedly 100% healthy so far in 2010.

Returning to the court after a short stoppage, Nadal would lose the next three points in a row to hand Murray the break and put him ahead 2-0 in the third. After Murray took the next game to lead 3-0, the defending champion Nadal would be forced to retire due to the knee injury. Murray now advances to his first semi-final appearance at the Aussie Open winning 6-3, 7-6(2), 3-0. The Scotsman has yet to drop a set at the tournament.

For Nadal it is a devastating blow, as the Spaniard was trying to put his game back together after fighting knee issues for much of 2009. Even though he trailed two sets to one, a healthy Nadal always has a chance to claw his way back into a match. With the consistency in Murray's game, that likely would not have happened on this day - but it would have been nice to watch Nadal try.

Earlier in the day in the other men's quarter-final match, promising youngster Marin Cilic defeated Andy Roddick 7-6(4), 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-3 to advance to his first-ever Grand Slam semi-final. We have been talking about Cilic's potential for several years now and at the age of 22 the 6'6'' giant from Croatia seems ready to take his place among the best players in the world. Cilic will certainly be vaulted into the top-ten following the conclusion of this tournament and will now face Murray in the semis.

Both players were coming off five set matches in the previous round as Roddick had been pushed to the brink by Fernando Gonzalez and Cilic by U.S. Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro. For Roddick, it is another Grand Slam disappointment. After tasting Grand Slam success in 2003 at Flushing Meadows, Roddick had the misfortune of being in his prime at the same time as Roger Federer - the greatest tennis player that ever lived. Now, although Federer is still ranked number one, the men's game has a diverse array of talent, like Cilic, who are making it hard for Roddick to get that elusive second major title.

Cilic and Murray will now face each other in the semi-finals, with Murray owning a 3-1 lead in career matches between them. Cilic won their last encounter, a straight sets victory at the U.S. Open last year. We'll see if Murray can keep the fireworks going when they take the court later this week.

The mystery has been solved. Venus Williams was wearing underwear at the Australian Open but you had to look pretty close to see it because it matched the color of her skin as you can see here. It was rather risqué. I like it. Now on to more important things.

The last time Nikolay Davydenko reached a quarterfinal at a slam was 2007 so I was a bit surprised to see him take the first two sets against Fernando Verdasco in their fourth round match. Kolya won the year end championships last year but all the top players are usually so exhausted by then I didn’t think much of it. Plus I figured they must have poured honey over the courts in London or something similarly sticky for them to be slow enough for Kolya to beat Soderling, Federer, and Del Potro all in one go.

Kolya beat Federer again in Doha this month and I didn’t think much of that either as it was Federer’s first full tournament of the year. He beat Nadal in the Doha final but I figured he’d melt when faced with a tough fifth setter in the Melbourne summer heat. And he nearly did.

Kolya gave up a break to Verdasco in the third set and he looked like he was wiped out. He was hitting easy balls into the net and looked disorganized physically. Lucky for him Verdasco started feeling the pressure.

After winning the third set, Verdasco hit a double double to give a break back and his second serves were sailing dangerously close to the baseline. To his credit, he righted himself by going for big serves instead of pulling back – otherwise known as choking or taking your foot off the pedal or whatever it was I did on Saturday when I double faulted away a chance to reach a second set tiebreaker in the first round of the San Fernando Valley Championships. You may have heard of it.

Verdasco won the fourth set but gave up a break in the fifth and Kolya, the least shaky player of the two, is on to the quarterfinals. I’m still not on the Kolya bandwagon, I still expect him to melt against the top power guys, but I am curious to know what is responsible for his current burst of success. I mean he still looks like the same 150lb (68kg) runt to me so what’s the difference?

Justine Henin said she was inspired to come back by Kim Clijsters’ U.S. Open win. Inspiration is one way to put it. Cijsters went into the U.S. Open only seven matches into her second career and came away with her second slam title. Easy pickings is another way to put it. Henin’s eyes must have bugged out at the huge opportunity that is the current WTA Tour.

I could also imagine Henin’s mind refusing to let Clijsters get one over on her. They both reached their first slam final in 2001 and their careers are inextricably linked as two Belgian players - one a hard nosed champion and the other beloved but, let’s say, less skilled in the face of pressure.

And that’s how it’s playing out in Melbourne. Clijsters suffered her most lopsided defeat ever in the third round while Henin keeps coming from behind and is now into the semifinals. I’m definitely on Henin’s bandwagon and I’m betting heavily that Clijsters will be the first of the two to retire a second time. And if anyone from Belgium wins a slam in the next few years, it’ll be Henin or Yanina Wickmayer, not Clijsters.

See you after I figure out whether Marin Cilic can close out this match with Andy Roddick and reach his first slam semifinal. By the way, did you know that Cilic’s middle name is County?

twitter.com/ninarota

Only eight men remain in Melbourne at the Australian Open and is it any surprise that Roger Federer seems to be picking up his game at the right time?

While I believed at the onset of the tournament that this could be where Roger's remarkable run of 22 consecutive Grand Slam semi-finals comes to an end, he clearly isn't playing as if that is a possibility.

After narrowly avoiding going down two sets to one in the opening round against Igor Andreev, Federer has been destroying his opposition just as we have grown accustomed to at the majors. Victor Hanescu, Alberta Montanes and Lleyton Hewitt were all sent packing easily in straight sets to set up the anticipated quarter-final match against confident Russian Nikolay Davydenko.

Davydenko started the tournament on fire by dispatching his first three opponents with ease, winning a set 6-0 on each occasion. Things seemed to be on-track against Fernando Verdasco in the fourth round as he took the first two sets before Verdasco stormed back to force a fifth and deciding set that Davydenko would ultimately salvage and emerge victorious 6-2, 7-5, 4-6. 6-7(6), 6-3.

Davydenko won his first tournament of 2010 by defeating Federer and Rafael Nadal along the way. He also won the season-ending championship in London at the end of 2009 by defeating the above two players and Juan Martin Del Potro in the finals. This guy is on a serious run at the moment and his confidence is at an all-time high. His comments in recent press conferences reveal a player who is believing in himself more than he ever has before.

While it is understandable that Davydenko is now mentioned among the favorites in this tournament and he has defeated the best players in the world recently, it remains to be seen how he handles himself in a five-setter against those same opponents. I'd back Federer or Nadal over Davydenko in a best of five format any day.

Roger gets my vote not only against Davydenko, but he looks focused on reclaiming the Aussie Open title from just about anyone at the moment. Grand Slam title number sixteen could be just around the corner.

In the remaining quarter-finals Novak Djokovic will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Andy Roddick takes on youngster Marin Cilic and a huge match between Andy Murray and Nadal looms as well. All of these matches are incredibly tight and could go either way. We could even get fiver-setters in all of them.

Cilic and Roddick stand at one win apiece against each other and this could be Cilic's break-out Grand Slam. I give him the nod in five sets against Roddick, although I'm sure rooting for the American to make it deeper in the draw.

Tsonga holds the advantage over Djokovic 4-2, while Nadal leads Murray head-to-head 7-2. I think Djokovic has something to prove in this tournament and with Todd Martin now firmly in his corner he will find the composure required to move forward. With Murray, he still lacks the mental edge in the Slams and Nadal looks healthy which is a dangerous prospect. The Spaniard should advance closer towards a defense of his Aussie Open title.

Regardless of the end result, tournament organizers and tennis fans worldwide should be thrilled with the amount of big-name talent that has made it to the final eight.

Time for fourth-round matches to get underway in Melbourne and there are some fantastic battles on deck for Sunday from both the bottom-half of the men's and women's draws.

John Isner, Ivo Karlovic and Andy Roddick are proving that a big serve still goes a long way on the men's side. Karlovic leads the tournament with 93 aces through three matches, while Isner is second with 81 and Roddick in sixth position with 47. Karlovic and Isner have both played several more sets than Roddick which explains their elevated numbers. Sunday could be the day of the tie-break as it is going to be a challenge to break these serves for their opponents.

Karlovic and Isner face tough matches against Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray respectively. While Karlovic is in over his 6'10'' head in this one against Nadal, Isner has a chance to make his encounter with Murray a meaningful one. The American is playing the best tennis of his professional career and is fresh off an impressive victory over 12th seeded Gael Monfils. While I expect Murray will advance, Isner will provide him with his toughest test of the tournament thus far.

Roddick should be able to knock-off Fernando Gonzalez as the erratic Chilean just barely made it past Igor Korolev in five tight sets in the previous round. Roddick has been playing terrific tennis so far this season and is still undefeated in 2010.

The fourth round match to watch is between youngsters Juan Martin Del Potro and Marin Cilic and has the best odds for a five set match on Sunday.The two have only met twice before and both times were at Grand Slams in 2009. Each time, Del Potro dropped the opening set before prevailing in four. Cilic has yet to come into his own but expect him to remain a fixture in the top-twenty for years to come. Both are twenty one (in fact Del Potro is only five days older) and they each tower over most of their opponents at 6'6''. While Del Potro already has a Grand Slam title to his credit, nobody would have expected that from him a year ago. My point is that much can change within the frame of one year. With one title already in 2010, maybe this is Cilic's year to make a name for himself.

On the women's side, Sunday has the all-Belgian battle between Justine Henin and Yanina Wickmayer. While it might not be the all-Belgian match-up that we looked forward to when the draw was announced, it is still going to provide some fireworks. Wickmayer is undefeated so far this year after winning the title in Auckland and going through three rounds of qualifying action in Melbourne as well. She has more match-play under her belt in 2010 than anyone else on tour and is capable of giving Henin a real push. When Henin lost the first set of her match against Alisa Kleybanova, it showed that she is still shaking off some post-retirement rust. I think Wickmayer has a great shot at taking her out.

Aside from the Belgians, we have a couple of all-Russian matches on Sunday to look forward to. Nadia Petrova meets reigning French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova while second-seeded Dinara Safina faces Maria Kirilenko.

Kuznetsova leads Petrova 5-1 in career meetings, but Petrova seems to be on a nice role in this tournament and her lopsided victory over Kim Clijsters has certainly given her a confidence booster.

Don't expect another upset out of Maria Kirilenko. While she played terrific against Maria Sharapova in the first round, I think she is in tough against a very fit Dinara Safina who seems to be keeping the mental aspect of her game in check lately. Kirilenko has matched her career-best result in a Grand Slam, as she also made the fourth round here in Australia in 2008. I don't see her going any further at the moment.

The remaining women's match on Sunday has Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko against Jie Zheng from China. Both are ranked in the top thirty and have played each other three times before. Zheng won the first two times back in 2003, while Bondarenko came out on top 7-5, 7-5 two weeks ago in Hobart en route to her second career title.

I have always thought that Alona's younger sister Kateryna was the one to watch between these two, however it is Alona who is on fire so far this year as evidenced by her title in Hobart and her straight-sets victory of Jelena Jankovic in the previous round. She doesn't have much power to her game, but it won't be needed against Zheng and I think she'll take her in two sets to advance to the quarter-finals.

Wow - who saw that one coming?

Kim Clijsters was demolished on Friday in Melbourne 6-0, 6-1 by 19th seeded Nadia Petrova. It was her first career loss to Petrova in five meetings. This was their first encounter since Clijsters emerged from retirement last summer and a result that nobody would have seen coming.

Clijsters has been on fire since coming back in July 2009, winning her first Grand Slam tournament at the U.S. Open and starting 2010 off on a winning note in Brisbane with a win over Justine Henin in the finals. All signs pointed to another strong showing here at the Australian Open where she was considered one of the favorites.

But it was Petrova who was in control from start to finish on Friday, finishing with 15 winners to a mere 10 unforced errors. She would only allow Clijsters a total of five points during the entire first set.

Clijsters was clearly not on her game as she had only 5 winners the entire match while committing 26 unforced errors. After the match, the Belgian praised Petrova's play, but admitted that she was largely responsible for the outcome.

"I was completely off. Just, you know, I think tennis‑wise, I didn't feel the ball at all. You know, on the other hand, you know, she was good. But, you know, I let her ‑‑ you know, I made all the mistakes and she didn't really have to do much. She served really well and was aggressive in the rallies, but that's because I let her play into the courts. Just because I wasn't feeling the ball well. It sucks."

Petrova is a player I have always been impressed with - in practice. Physically she seems infinitely stronger than most of the women on tour and her serve is really something else. You would think that would translate into more success on the court. Yet every time I've seen her play a match against the top players, it seems she is completely out of her league.

That being said, Petrova does have a history of solid results at the Slams. This is her third round-of-sixteen result at Australia in a row, and she made the quarter-finals in 2006. She has made the semi-finals at the French Open twice before, the quarters at Wimbledon twice, and the quarters of the U.S. Open two times as well.

While it’s not possible for me, a casual bowler, to be in a bowling alley most of the day - nor would I want to be when I really think about it – but, I do love overly-crispied greasy French fries. I’d like to have access to one of the best amateur sports tool ever created –not the hand blower --- the bowling-pin reset button. 

On court yesterday, a despondent Dana started her story, “I can’t believe I lost the first set to Bobbie.” She shook her head. “Everyone told me I’d beat her easily; I saw her play a few weeks ago in a tourney and she had nothin’.”

“Obviously she had more than that,” I said.

“It gets better,” she shushed me with her raised hand. “After losing the first set 6-1, I sat on the bench at the changeover faced with a decision: Do I do a Sarah Palin and quit mid-term? Do I cry? Do I improve my game right now? Do I play her game better than she does?”

I said, “You did not quit; I know that much about you.”

“Right,” she said, “the last time I cried in public was 6^th grade, and that didn’t get me the kiss I wanted; I’d been playing ‘my’ game as best I could, and she was just eking out points.”

“So you played ‘her’ game?”

“Not so fast,” Dana slowed me down. “I heard a chant in my head ‘Upset, re-set, next set, no upset.’”

“And during the set changeover you…”

She leaned against the netpost and said, “I decided to play her game – and play it better than she does. I had to trust my ability to play, not my ability to win.”

“Winning’ might be just one shot; ‘playing’ is the entire match?” I posed.

“This almost upset, thankfully, inspired me to play with more of me.” 

The result was a first round win for Dana. “Unlike the early round victim: Sharapova,” Dana added, “I’ll be able to go out tomorrow and compete with another opponent and reset my expectations and goals. Maria’s going back to the gym with her coach, Michael Joyce, to reset her choices for the next tournament, two weeks from now.” 

The upsets at the Australian Open are our chance to see how the pros re-set for the next tourney and these unexpected losses may even be more interesting than an expected victory. When I watch carefully, I can see some of the players do it between points: egos checked, goals revamped - adjustments along the way. Seeing the ball. Doing whatever it takes to play.

Thank you, Maria. You spared us the agony of a boring first-round at the 2010 Australian Open. Resetting will be more fun.