More 'major" challenges ahead
It's great to see the big-hitting Russian healthy and reasserting her presence in the game. It bodes well for the rest of her season. When she is firing on all cylinders, she is almost unstoppable. It's a far cry from 2007, when Sharapova struggled with a shoulder injury, missed several weeks in the spring and dropped out of the top five. She won just one title all year. She started turning things around at November's championships at Madrid, muscling her way to the final and nearly upending Henin in three tight sets.

Can she keep it up? I don't see why not. A big goal for her is to try to win the French Open. Not a lot of women have won all four majors and with her 2004 Wimbledon and 2006 U.S. Open titles, she can join that elite group. What's more, it should be a welcome challenge to her. She's still not as comfortable with her movement on clay. If she maintains this level and stays healthy, she has as good a chance as anyone to win again in London or New York, which are on grass and hard courts. That suits her first-strike style.

Of course, it won't be easy, and what's exciting is that we leave the year's first major with several players potentially in the mix and vying for No. 1. Henin is still there, of course. Ivanovic is getting closer, especially if she can get her mental act together. You never know with the Williams sisters. One moment they can win majors and the next moment they can disappoint. Maybe coming up short of a title here will inspire them. The supporting cast of contenders such as Jankovic, Svetlana Kuznetsova and perhaps even new mom Davenport could spice things up. For now, though, Sharapova is queen of Melbourne.

Keep a close eye on Ivanovic
Overshadowed by Sharapova being the big news at this major was what we saw from Ivanovic. She's taken strides and has put a good team of coaches, trainers and managers around her. It was a real positive for her that she showed no signs of the nerves that crippled her in the French Open final last year. It was impressive how she drew first blood in the showdown with Sharapova. She just couldn't keep it going for the entire match.

In the first set, the Serbian had her chance at 5-4, 0-30 on Sharapova's serve. Inexplicably, her game deflated, including a backhand drop shot into the net -- a total brain cramp. The game was a mass of errors and poor shot selection. Serving to stay in the match at 3-5 in the second set, Ivanovic also played a poor game and didn't even make Sharapova hit a winning volley to seal the match, instead misfiring wide on a hittable forehand passing shot. That was Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday and Happy Valentine's Day all wrapped into one.

That's not to say Ivanovic hasn't made progress. She beat Venus Williams for the first time here and came back from a 0-6, 0-2 deficit against Daniela Hantuchova in the semifinals. She's learning how to resurrect herself. Before if she got into trouble she went into a downward spiral and she couldn't get herself back into it mentally or emotionally. She's less nervous in the big moments, but still nervous. At 20, the cheerful and attractive Serb has time to develop more big-match skills. Everyone matures at their own pace. Davenport, for instance, didn't win her first of three majors at the U.S. Open until she was 21. It's a good bet Ivanovic's time will come.

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