Aussie Open

Justine Henin-Hardenne answered my question by beating Maria Sharapova and advancing to the finals against Amelie Mauresmo. Mauresmo also hits it hard, and has been a very good player the last few years. She just hasn't made the jump to the level of Grand Slam champion. But she's pounding JHH in the first set right now, up 4-0. JHH is hitting a lot of balls into the net. It's refreshing to watch a match where the players don't grunt or scream or yell or do whatever it is that Monica Seles did all the time. It sounded like "onh-EEEE!" every time she struck the ball. However, there are birds inside Rod Laver Arena, and their constant chirping is a bit annoying.

I'm not terribly worried that JHH is getting pounded right now, since she lost the first set in the two previous matches as well. I went to camp with a guy who we played chess against. You'd play him once and beat him. Then you'd never beat him again. That's what JHH has been like lately.

On the men's side, Roger Federer is up against Marcos Baghdatis in the final. Federer is a quiet Swiss player who has tennis watchers saying that he's the best player the game has ever seen. Among those proclaiming such is Rod Laver, a man with legitimate claim to the title himself. If he's better than Sampras, then I need to watch more tennis. But from what they say, Federer is the real deal. Baghdatis has been getting more press for three main reasons: 1) Federer winning is a "dog bites man" story. It's such a regular occurrence, it's become old news. 2) Baghdatis is an unseeded player making it all the way to the finals. (Mauresmo is now up 5-1 in the first, by the way) and 3) After Baghdatis beat top-seeded Andy Roddick, someone asked if he would hang around for the next match to see who he would play in the next round. He said something to the effect of "I think my coach will stay and watch. I'm going to go sleep with my girlfriend." For the next two rounds, they showed the girl on TV every 30 seconds. She's a nice-looking girl. Mauresmo wins the first 6-1.