Serena, Venus, and the men

The 2002 tennis season is complete. It was a season full of excitement, as we saw complete domination on the women's side of the game, and a wide-open shootout on the men's side.

Heading into next year, though, there are still many questions to be answered.

* Will Pete Sampras hang up his racquet or will he make another run at glory?

Sampras made a run for the ages at Flushing Meadows and showed some flashes of brilliance similar to his old form. I can remember talking to my brother-in-law right before the Open, and telling him that Sampras will win it all. You should have seen the perplexed look I received, along with some verbal heckling.

Sampras turned back the clock and showed he still has game. He will take some time to gather his thoughts, but I think he will return for one more run. One more "Breakfast at Wimbledon" is calling his name.

* Which Williams' sister will dominate the new year?

The 2003 women's season will begin with talk of whether or not Serena Williams can continue to show dominance at the Slams. Serena is currently the French Open, Wimbledon, and U.S. Open champion.

At the Australian Open, Serena will be vying for her fourth Grand Slam title in a row. If she wins, she would complete a career Grand Slam. She would also be the holder of the "Serena Slam," which would be similar to the "Tiger Slam" in golf -- holding all the major titles, but not winning them in the same calendar year.

* Will Andy Roddick breakthrough and win his first Slam or will another talented up-and-comer surprise us this year?

Roddick is a promising young American player who wears his emotions on his sleeve. The youngster needs to develop a more all-around game if he wants to have a career with multiple Grand Slam titles.

Sampras gave Roddick a huge wakeup call in the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open this year when he beat him in straight sets. We will have to wait until next year to see if Roddick has the ability to raise his game to the elite level.

With the 2003 season quickly approaching, the pool of talent is growing rapidly on the men's tour.

Back in August, I went to the Legg Mason Classic in Washington DC. As I was walking around deciding which match to watch, I noticed a crowd forming near the practice courts. As I made my way to the fence to sneak a peak, I was amazed at the groundstrokes I was witnessing. The accuracy, the velocity, and the determination in his face all jumped out at me. Who was this player?

I soon realized that the player was Paradorn Srichaphan. Srichaphan, an up and coming superstar from Thailand, bolted his way through the rankings this year from No. 126 to No. 18. He lost in the Legg Mason final to James Blake, another up and coming American.

Srichaphan put himself in the spotlight again a few weeks later at the U.S. Open and despite a second round loss at The Open, he displayed a fiery emotion along with a never say die attitude that gained him numerous fans around the world. Look out for Srichaphan in 2003!

However, while the men's game seems to be developing parity through its ranks, the women's game does not.

There are only a handful of women who can win the Grand Slams, with Serena and Venus the clear favorites at every tournament. The only other players that can be lumped in the same category as the Williams' sisters are Jennifer Capriati, the 2002 Australian Open champion, and possibly Kim Clijsters, who defeated Serena at the year ending WTA Championships.

Many of the players simply don't possess the talent and athletic ability needed to compete with the upper group of players, and it just seems like the same players reach the quarterfinals each time.

On the other hand, the men's draw is deep and possesses a high level of talent. When it comes time to watch a Slam you find quality matches, with many upsets, for the full two weeks on the men's side of the draw. On the women's side, you could begin watching in the middle of the second week and you probably would not have missed much!

The 2002 women's Grand Slam winners were:

Australian: Jennifer Capriati French Open: Serena Williams Wimbledon: Serena Williams U.S. Open: Serena Williams

The 2002 men's Grand Slam winners:

Australian Open: Thomas Johansson French Open: Albert Costa Wimbledon: Lleyton Hewitt U.S. Open: Pete Sampras

There's an interesting point to make here. When you look at the winners of the men's Grand Slams, and their rankings at year end, you find: No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, No. 14 Thomas Johansson, No. 9 Albert Costa, and No. 13 Pete Sampras. Now, compare those rankings to the women who were No. 14, No. 9, No. 13 and you come up with Magdalena Maleeva, Jelena Dokic, and Chanda Rubin.

Maleeva, Dokic, and Rubin are all quality players, but do they really have the game to breakthrough and win a Slam?

The WTA has quality players, but the athleticism of the Williams' sisters changes the whole game.

Serena defeated her sister, Venus, in all of her Slam victories. Let's hope there is some variety this year. The Williams' sisters are simply at another athletic level than the rest of the competition. Right now the WTA should not stand for the Women's Tennis Association, but The Williams' Tennis Association.

Email any comments to ronnyp_24@yahoo.com.