Australian Open 2011

Yes, it is finally here!! At last, I can get up in the morning and switch on the television, knowing there's something meaningful to watch.

This time, I am excited because Rafa is on the verge of a 'Rafa-slam' ( I love the term! You really shouldn't much by my opinion because I love anything Rafa :-)), and because, Justine Henin is back after that 6-month injury lay-off. I am hoping that she will be able to emulate last year's performance and reach the final. As far as Rafa is concerned, I want him to win obviously. However, with the illness and all, I think I am betting more on Justine than Rafa.
Yesterday's first round match - Justine Henin vs Sania Mirza, was always going to be tough. But, I really did not expect breaks from the first game itself. That first set was scary. As usual, however, Mirza finally lost stamina, and went down quite meekly in the third set. The third set was more close to what I had expected to be the case through out the match. Point is, Justine's through to the second and I heave one big sigh of relief :-)
Rafa's match today got over in 47 mins. With an injured opponent playing against you, you can't expect it to go on for long. It is good, coz that means Rafa remains pretty fresh, and it is a little bad, because it got over before I even woke up!
I am delighted to be watching the first week. A friend of mine and I are big fans of tennis. The Grand Slams are treats we always wait for. We always argue about the excitement of the first week. Nothing really happens. All the paisa-vasool matches really come in the second week. But, my argument is that the first week is full of tennis. Something or the other is going on, on some court somewhere. Unlike the second, when the matches are few and just get fewer.
The first Grand Slam of the year looks to excite all tennis fans, and we can't expect to have anything less!!