Serena, Justine, Venus top Australian Open Betfair Odds

Going into the second week of the 2010 Australian Open, world #1 Serena Williams, wildcard and former #1 Justine Henin, and #6 Venus Williams hold the top three spots in betting odds of who will win the singles title in the first major of the year. Early pre-tournament favorites Kim Clijsters and Maria Sharapova saw their chances of winning evaporate as both lost early, in the third round and the first round respectively.

Here are the current odds at Betfair.com before the start of the fourth round:

1. Serena Williams - 2.94
2. Justine Henin - 5.2
3. Venus Williams - 8.8
4. Dinara Safina - 10.5
5. Victoria Azarenka - 16

I'm glad I'm not a betting man but if I am, I would put Safina behind Serena and 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the top five. Safina has been steadily and quietly progressing through the draw and the highest ranked person she could face before the semifinals is #31 Alona Bondarenko. Kuznetsova may not have performed well in previous years at the Australian Open but if she faces Henin in the quarterfinals, I'll be betting on her to move on.