Penultimate

I don't actually have very much to say today, but I've been blogging every day of the Australian tennis summer, so I'm not going to stop two days from the finish line. If I didn't have a job, maybe I could blog about the women's final, but unfortunately, for those of us in retail, Saturday afternoon is money time.

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So surprise, surprise. Sharapova beat Ivanovic. Colour me stunned.

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I know Ivanovic was seeded higher than Sharapova, but there was no way Sharapova wasn't going to win that match. When you compare the form Sharapova is in - ain't just anyone can bagel Justine Henin - to the form Ivanovic was in - bageled by Hantuchova in the semis before coming back.... foregone conclusion, really. I thought Ivanovic won in the dress stakes, but in the tennis stakes, Sharapova, throughout the tournament, was playing lightyears better.

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I suppose I could talk about the men's final coming up tonight, but it's still a bit of a sore point for me. A final without Federer seems strange and unusual. All I can say is this: Jo-Wilfried, please, please, please pound Djokovic into the ground. Go Schwarzenegger on him again. Please. I mean, who does Djokovic think he is, saying that 'this is the Slam final everyone wanted to see?'

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I mean, sure. It's nice to see young players coming up. But this is certainly not the Slam final I wanted to see. I want to see Roger Federer make history.

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Well, I suppose I can't complain. By Roger's own admission, he didn't play his best tennis, even though he tried as hard as he could. But I'm just so sad for him. This year's chance at the Slam gone before it even began...

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But I'm trying to be optimistic about it. Maybe this will be good for Roger. It might lift some pressure off him coming into the French. Last year, he said he felt pressure in Indian Wells and Miami because expectation was so great. Maybe a little less expectation will be a good thing. And because he won't be trying for four Slams in a row at the French, maybe that will make it a bit easier as well.

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And maybe it will help him reevaluate a bit as well. I don't know what was up with him, but he didn't seem quite himself this tournament. He was a bit... well, stroppy, really. Somewhere between the Santoro match and the Tipsarevic match - I don't know if something happened, but it was like the off-switch got flicked and he wasn't quite all there. He has a break coming up now before the US hardcourt tournaments start. Maybe it will be good.

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Because I have no doubt - no doubt WHATSOEVER - that Roger Federer will come back, bigger and better than ever. Because that is who he is.

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Australian Open Results - Day 13

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Women's Draw

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Maria Sharapova def. Ana Ivanovic, 7-5 6-3