With French champion Justine Henin chasing her first Wimbledon crown and holder Amelie Mauresmo seeking to regain her best form after surgery, it's hard to separate the women's field this year. With the Wimbledon Championships beginning next Monday, here's a look at what looks a competitive women's line-up. First, the favourites . . . JUSTINE HENIN: Wimbledon is the only Slam tournament the Belgian has not won, though she was a finalist last year. Grass is obviously her weakest surface, but there is nothing weak about Henin's game. She is playing extremely well, serving well (for now), and going to the net quite a bit. There is no reason to exclude her from the list of women who are likely to win this year. AMELIE MAURESMO: The defending champion and my favourite WTA player is not having a good season. She missed much of the clay season because of surgery for appenditis, and then a long recovery period. She has simply not been herself since the medical leave. But grass is the French girl's best surface (she is no slouch on clay, I might add), and anything can happen in a Grand Slam tournament. Mauresmo, now 26, believes she can win Wimbledon again, and perhaps her belief will help her make it two in a row. SERENA WILLIAMS: Some of the excitement about Williams has faded a little since her loss at the French Open, but she is nevertheless a contender. The 25-year-old American has won the tournament twice, and if she can get into the same gear she was in for the Australian Open, she can win a third time. MARIA SHARAPOVA: Sharapova stunned the tennis world in 2004 when she beat Serena Williams and won Wimbledon. She has had her ups and downs since then, winning the 2006 US Open and then getting run over by Williams in this year's Australian final. She has also suffered with a chronic shoulder injury, which has been the cause of much of her poor service game in 2007. One can safely assume that the injury-induced problem has also lowered her confidence. Sharapova just made it to the Birmingham final, but was defeated by Jelena Jankovic. Still only 20, she shines on grass, and she shines at big moments. If she can serve, she can win it. JELENA JANKOVIC: It pleases me to be able to put Jankovic on this list because I have believed in her for a long time. I have no doubt that the 22-year-old Serbian is headed toward a major win, and she has two more tries this year. She just won a Wimbledon warm-up tournament in Birmingham. The tour's Energizer Bunny, Jankovic apparently prefers match play to practice, and cannot stop entering tournaments. I still think that her body, her psyche, or both will be hurt by this excessive match play; I believe that fatigue (and, of course, her opponent's spectacular performance) was more of a factor than nerves in her easy loss to Justine Henin at the French Open. Henin is Jankovic's nemesis: Despite the fact that Jankovic appears to have solved the Henin puzzle, she still loses their matches. And though the threat is not quite as serious, the extremely talented Jankovic also has a nemesis in her compatriot... ANA IVANOVIC: Ivanovic went to pieces in her French Open final against Henin, but the Serbian teenager is not likely to go to pieces again at such a big moment. Her big, smooth game is great for the grass courts; she can out-serve just about everyone but Williams on a good day, and she has finally learned how to move on the court. Ivanovic may still not be ready to win a big one, but then again, perhaps she is. NICOLE VAIDISOVA: Vaidisova also seems destined to win a big one. Though I do not think this will be the one, the 18-year-old Slovakian still has to be seen as major competition. Now for the dark horses . . . VENUS WILLIAMS: It feels funny to list Williams as a dark horse. The last time people counted her out, in 2005, she won the tournament. But Venus just does not have it together now like she used to, and she cannot be considered a major contender. However, anyone who has won Wimbledon three times deserves to be seen as at least a strong outside bet. MARTINA HINGIS: Hingis's hip has been giving her all kinds of trouble, and forced her to withdraw from the French Open, the tournament we know she most wants to win (she has never won it). A lack of match play, an injury, and the peaking of her ability - for now - on the tour make her an unlikely winner in London. But if she comes in totally healed with the good Hingis serve, who knows? SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: There isn't a better athlete on the tour, and Kuznetsova possesses a variety of skills, but she has never gone past the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. The young Russian is also having trouble winning tournaments this year - a finalist four times, she has lost four times. Still, a player of Kuznetsova's stature has to be included as a possibility. ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Nicknamed 'Little Hingis' because she uses her head to make up for her size, Chakvetadze has yet to make it past the third round at Wimbledon, or past the quarter-finals of any Grand Slam tournament. A few years ago, she had runaway emotions on the court that cost her several wins. And at the French Open, when she was required to play again a day after playing in one of that tournament's two marathon matches, she was so exhausted that it was all she could do to stand on the court. If Chakvetadze has a fitness problem, she cannot win Wimbledon. But sometimes, after playing such a draining match as she played at the French, any player can wilt. If she can maintain her fitness level, the 20-year-old Russian can go far. And finally, the players to watch . . . SAM STOSUR: The Australian doubles star is especially good on grass, and if she is having a good day, can entertain. Her serves are almost consistently excellent, too. MARA SANTANGELO: The Italian's serve-and-volley game is made for grass, and she could be a dangerous floater at Wimbledon. ELENI DANIILIDOU: One of the biggest under-achievers on the tour, Daniilidou does best on grass. It is frustrating to follow the career of this talented Greek player, who cannot seem to move forward. MICHAELLA KRAJICEK: Another under-achiever of note, Kracijek has trouble stringing victories together. Grass is her best surface, however, and if the Dutch girl's game is on, it is outstanding. BETHANIE MATTEK: The 22-year-old American is worth watching for her tennis outfits! Mattek created a stir last year, and caused a run on women's football socks at London department stores. (Mattek, by the way, has totally re-structured her game, and she is serving extremely well.)
