Venus, Seles blow to Open

Martina Hingis, the world number one and defending champion, is once again the centre of attention both on and off the court.

The Swiss teenager is chasing a record fourth straight title on the Melbourne Park Centre court after joining Margaret Court, Evonne Goolagong-Cawley, Graf and Seles as the only women to win three in a row during the Open era.

Hingis claimed her third straight crown when she beat France’s Amelie Mauresmo in last year’s final but little has gone right for her since then in a clumsy fall from grace.

She was beaten in the first round at Wimbledon after falling out with her mother Melanie then lost the US Open final to Serena Williams. Her one saving grace was that she still managed to finish the year on top of the rankings and she is hoping for a better time in 2000.

Hingis’s main threat at the Open is Lindsay Davenport, the world number two. The American began 1999 ranked number one but lost her top billing to Hingis shortly after Melbourne. Her consolation came when she took her Swiss rival’s Wimbledon title.

Fitter and slimmer than at the start of previous seasons, Davenport looms as Hingis’s biggest danger though she says Serena Williams is as big a worry. “There are a lot of great players but Martina and Serena are really going to be the hardest to beat. They have better games and have done it all before,” Davenport said.

The withdrawal of Serena’s big sister Venus with tendinitis in her wrist has robbed the tournament of one of its most interesting players and came as a blow to tournament organisers after four-times champion Seles withdrew with a nagging foot injury.

Graf, another four-time winner, retired last year but is in Melbourne supporting boyfriend Andre Agassi.

The old stagers such as Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Conchita Martinez and Mary Pierce have all re-entered and can never be discarded as open chances. The new brigade are also pushing their claims. Russian Anna Kournikova is still looking for her first singles title after more than four years as a professional while last year’s Wimbledon quarter-finalist Jelena Dokic will carry the hopes of the host nation.