Tennis season reaches break point
By Don Riddell, CNN World Sport
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Clijsters still has plenty to prove.
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LONDON, England -- The tennis season is almost over, and the game's top stars can look forward to a long hard rest. Well, all six weeks of it, before they're back on the global treadmill once again.
There's just one more tournament left for those who are fit enough to reach the finish line. The men meet in Houston for the Masters Cup, and the women gather in Los Angeles for the WTA Championships.
The curtain call on the women's tour has been hardest hit -- no Williams sisters, and no Lindsay Davenport either. Injury has deprived the event of some much-needed credibility, but even without Venus and Serena, the end result is still fairly predictable.
In their absence this season, the Belgian girls, Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters, have dominated. While predictable, it is at least developing into a genuinely fascinating rivalry. They're not friends, and never have been according to Henin-Hardenne.
Clijsters has plenty to prove. She lost two majors to Henin-Hardenne this year, but has somehow managed to hold the world number one title. A successful defense of this event in LA will go some way to proving she's the genuine article.
While the women's tour has been largely predictable this year, the men's has been anything but. The last eight grand slams have provided as many different winners, and this year's champions have made it a fascinating season.
The Australian Open winner Andre Agassi proved he's still got what it takes at the age of 33. He's easily been the most consistent performer over the last six years -- an ever present at the end-of-season party since 1998.
The two time defending Masters Cup champion Lleyton Hewitt will not be defending his title -- he didn't qualify. And any plans he had of dominating the sport 'a la Sampras' have been scuppered by the arrival of Juan Carlos Ferrero, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick .
The French Open, Wimbledon and US Open champions respectively will be expected to contest the Cup in Houston. Between them they've won 16 titles this season, but my money's on Andy Roddick. He's only lost five matches since the end of May. Roger Federer is the biggest name to beat him in that time, but the Swiss star is really struggling for form.
But he better find it soon -- the new season is literally a matter of weeks away. Some tournaments even start at the end of December in preparation for the Australian Open in the New Year. For tennis players, there's no such thing as down time!!
Don Riddell presents World Sport on CNN International at 0930 GMT, 1230 GMT, 1430 GMT, and 2130 GMT daily (also 0030 GMT at weekends and daily in Asia.)
