NEW YORK - Serena Williams returns to the scene of her first grand slam triumph seeking to seal her comeback from a frightening year by lifting a fourth US Open trophy.
Certainly the signs are good. Even without the benefit of a top-10 world ranking Williams has established herself as the favourite with two dominant hardcourt victories at Stanford and Toronto.
A midweek withdrawal with a sore toe at Cincinnati appears to have been just a blip - a precautionary move to insure she'd be healthy for Flushing Meadows.
The injury absence of two-time reigning champion Kim Clijsters along with the struggles of world No1 Caroline Wozniacki put the spotlight firmly on Williams and another resurgent champion, Maria Sharapova.
Wozniacki comes in as the top seed but lost in the semi-finals in Australia, the third round at Roland Garros and the fourth round at Wimbledon.
Sharapova, who made it to the final at Wimbledon, is riding the momentum of a victory in Cincinnati into the Open.
"It's great to have a win under your belt going into a major," said Sharapova, who added that she was looking forward to the US Open even with the pressure that a grand slam fortnight brings.
Two new names have shown this year they can handle that pressure - French Open champion Li Na and Czech Petra Kvitova, the Wimbledon winner.
Li, China's first grand slam singles champion, has struggled since her French triumph. Kvitova, 21, who spent some time after Wimbledon resting and recovering from a thigh injury, has also had modest results in the build-up to the Open, but still hopes to show that her first grand slam title was no fluke.
A viral illness has sidelined former winner Venus Williams.
Serena eyes fairytale US Open run
NEW YORK - Serena Williams returns to the scene of her first grand slam triumph seeking to seal her comeback from a frightening year by lifting a fourth US Open trophy.
Certainly the signs are good. Even without the benefit of a top-10 world ranking Williams has established herself as the favourite with two dominant hardcourt victories at Stanford and Toronto.
A midweek withdrawal with a sore toe at Cincinnati appears to have been just a blip - a precautionary move to insure she'd be healthy for Flushing Meadows.
The injury absence of two-time reigning champion Kim Clijsters along with the struggles of world No1 Caroline Wozniacki put the spotlight firmly on Williams and another resurgent champion, Maria Sharapova.
Wozniacki comes in as the top seed but lost in the semi-finals in Australia, the third round at Roland Garros and the fourth round at Wimbledon.
Sharapova, who made it to the final at Wimbledon, is riding the momentum of a victory in Cincinnati into the Open.
"It's great to have a win under your belt going into a major," said Sharapova, who added that she was looking forward to the US Open even with the pressure that a grand slam fortnight brings.
Two new names have shown this year they can handle that pressure - French Open champion Li Na and Czech Petra Kvitova, the Wimbledon winner.
Li, China's first grand slam singles champion, has struggled since her French triumph. Kvitova, 21, who spent some time after Wimbledon resting and recovering from a thigh injury, has also had modest results in the build-up to the Open, but still hopes to show that her first grand slam title was no fluke.
A viral illness has sidelined former winner Venus Williams.