Can sisters Venus Williams and Serena Williams maintain their excellence?
Both won a Grand Slam event in 2008, the third time that has happened in the past four seasons. In fact, the siblings have been shut out in Slams only twice — in 2004 and 2006 — since Serena opened the scoring with a U.S. Open title in 1999. She and older sister Venus now stand at a crossroads where one would think age and desire might be factors, yet they seem to be better than ever on big occasions. What kind of sequel will the Serbian women write? Jelena Jankovic finished 2008 as the WTA’s No. 1 player. Ana Ivanovic also reached the top ranking and won her first Slam. Yet both enter ’09 with something to prove. Jankovic’s best shot to win her first Slam might be at Roland Garros, where Ivanovic broke through last season: Clay plays well to Jankovic’s gymnastic style, and there’s no dominant female player on the surface. Ivanovic, hurt at midseason, simply needs to demonstrate durability. Who has the best shot at becoming a first-time Slam winner? Jankovic, followed closely by a ma
