Sport
Serena Williams, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga advance to the 4th round at the Australian Open
Coming off an injury-ravaged 18 months, Williams is seeded 12th in Melbourne. She hasn’t held the top ranking since 2010, the year she won the last of her Grand Slam titles.
On Saturday, she spoke expansively about her off-court activities: She’s taking courses in kinesiology and management and preparing for an appearance in a “pretty big” TV show.
Arn says “everybody knows” if Williams hits top form she will win the Australian Open, where she hasn’t lost since 2008. She won back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010 and was unable to defend her title last year while she recovered from two foot surgeries.
Because of her ranking, Williams can’t take the No. 1 spot with a win at Melbourne. However, No. 2 Petra Kvitova, No. 3 Victoria Azarenka and No. 4 Maria Sharapova could walk away with the top ranking if they win the tournament.
Next up for Williams is unseeded Russian Ekaterina Makarova. After that, things are likely to get a lot tougher.
Sharapova is a potential quarterfinal opponent, and Wimbledon champion Kvitova may await in the semifinals.
“I’m nowhere near where I want to be,” said Williams, who came into the tournament nursing a sprained left ankle. “I’m just trying to play through it. A little rusty, just trying to play through my rust.”
Sharapova and Kvitova joined Williams in advancing to the fourth round on Saturday. Between the three of them, they lost six games.
