Serena, 4 former #1s, lead Australia Open 2010 Odds

Current world #1 and defending Australian Open champion Serena Williams lead betting odds in the futures market for data released as of Saturday, Dec 12. Her odds of repeating the 2010 Australian Open are the shortest. Following Serena are a list of four other former grand slam champions and #1 players. Here are Serena's odds and other players who have chances to win the 2010 Australian Open women's singles title.

1. Serena Williams, +275 (11/4), Paddy Power
2. Kim Clijsters, +450 (9/2), Blue Square
3. Justine Henin, +550 (11/2), Victor Chandler
4. Venus Williams, +900 (9/1), Blue Square
5. Maria Sharapova, +1000 (10/1), Blue Square
6. Victoria Azarenka, +1600 (16/1), Boylesports
7. Elena Dementieva, +1600 (16/1), Blue Square
8. Caroline Wozniacki, +1800 (18/1), Sky Bet
9. Dinara Safina, +2000 (20/1) Paddy Power
10. Svetlana Kuznetsova, +2200 (22/1) Blue Square

My TAKE: I find the odds strange - I don't know how they come up with this.

- Is it based on previous performance on the surface? If so, why is Venus Williams ranked higher than Maria Sharapova?
- Is it based on current results? If so, why is Justine Henin ranked way up there?
- Is it based on rankings? Why is Victoria Azarenka (not in top5) listed higher than Dinara Safina (#2) or Svetlana Kuznetsova (#3).

If I were to bet, and thankfully I don't, I would put my money on the following 5 players for the 2010 Australian Open in the following order:

1. Serena Williams
2. Maria Sharapova
3. Svetlana Kuznetsova
4. Elena Dementieva
5. Venus Williams

+ Points for Serena: Defending champion, current #1, performs well in big stages, won 4x in Australia, extra motivated due to US Open meltdown
- Points for Serena: Has she recovered from a long 2009 season? Hasn't won the Australian Open during even years (kinda strange, really)

+ Points for Maria: On the comeback trail, won last tournament played in Tokyo, has won in Australia in 2008 and reached finals in 2007
- Points for Maria: Is her body going to hold over 14 days of competition? Hasn't played well against top players recently

Kuznetsova and Dementieva both have the game to win in Australia. Kuznetsova has not played very well in Australia though. For Dementieva, will she have the willpower to beat Serena if the match gets to a third tiebreaker?

I also put Venus Williams on the list because her chances are dwindling as the years go by. She must realize this and would be extra motivated to win this year. Her finals showing at the WTA Championships show she can beat most other players except her younger sister.