Tennis / Lindsay Andrew / 13 January 2011 / Leave a comment Bet Now

With the five-time holder of the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and defending champion, Serena Williams, missing from this year's field, it's likely that a new name will be inscribed on the women's trophy this year.

Only Justine Henin [7.0] and Maria Sharapova [21] will be on the side of 'No' for the 'Will there be a new winner?' market. It's a funny time on the women's circuit - once again we have a no.1 without a Grand Slam title, Caroline Wozniacki, and the no.2, Vera Zvonareva, has the same gap in her trophy cabinet.

The quirks of the ranking system coupled with the stresses and strains of life on the tour mean the 'big guns' of the circuit - Kim Clijsters, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and Justine Henin are ranked nos. 3,4,5 and 13 respectively. The winner market for this event tells the real story though - Clijsters and Henin top the betting.

Kim Clijsters [3.1] is the obvious choice - she won Miami, Cincinnati, the US Open and WTA Championship in her first full year back on the tour. She has been quoted as saying she is in her best shape ever for January, she was a finalist here in 2004 and has reached the semis on four other occasions. Of all the women in the draw, you know she is the most mentally capable in the big matches.

Justine Henin showed her class last year by returning to no.13 in the world on just half a season, reaching the final here. Says she's not back to her best after the elbow injury which forced her to take six months off, but she's never one to boast about her chances anyway.

Clijsters, Serena and Stosur were the ones to cause her problems at the big events last year -all top five players. She won't be far away but her ranking means she could have to work harder than last year.

Caroline Wozniacki [9.2] has had a poor start to the year, losing to Clijsters in Thailand, Zvonareva in Hong Kong (0 & 1!), and then to Cibulkova in Sydney. The Dane changed racquet brands during the off-season, from Babolat to Yonex, and while this sounds minor to us weekend hackers, it invariably takes time to get used to, even if she played with them unofficially late last year.

I reckon she is feeling the pressure of being described as yet another false no.1 on the WTA Tour, having not won a Grand Slam title yet.

Vera Zvonareva [13.5] lost her first match in Sydney to Pennetta, a player she doesn't match up well against (h2h 2-4). Reached R4 last year but was hampered by an ankle injury. A finalist at Wimbledon and US Open last season, she has improved her mental game greatly, but her record in finals stands at 1-9. That's a big hurdle to overcome. The great local hope is Queenslander Samantha Stosur.

Her early form hasn't been great, beaten by Groth in Brisbane and Kuznetsova in Sydney, so not the ideal start, although there were first round wins at both those events.

She arrives as fifth seed this year, a sign that she should be capable of winning the event, so the home idol pressure is upon her, not to mention the emotions attached to the devastation in Queensland. Last year it was just a hope of victory when she was ranked 13, this time it's closer to expectation. She has beaten almost all her rivals with the exception of Clijsters (0-5 h2h).

Of the others, the usual suspects who have question marks against their ability to win a Grand Slam litter the market: Azarenka (ball-bashing tactics crumble when matched by top level opponent), Venus Williams (poor record in Melbourne), Sharapova (doubts she will ever return to her best after shoulder surgery), Ivanovic (a hint of her best form returned last year but was injured at the Hopman Cup), Kuznetsova (out to #25 in the rankings, poor record in finals), Jankovic (right off the boil at the moment).

My plan of attack is usually wait until the draw unless the odds are ridiculous - three players who are tempting at big prices are Na Li [85], semi-finalist here last year, and mentally tough; Marian Bartoli [110], has really put in the work in the off-season; and Petra Kvitova [65], Wimbledon semi-finalist who shows no fear.

The draw will be crucial - Clijsters, Henin and even Stosur could end up in the same quarter of the draw, which would open the market right up for trading.

The draw will be all-important for betting opportunities at this event, stay tuned for further articles from me throughout the fortnight.