It's the ladies' turn now

Was it really only a couple of years ago, give or take a brain cell or two, that I was lamenting the paucity of talent in women's tennis and applauding the depth of the men's game?

Sure, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were winning all the big tournaments, but on any given day there seemed a chance they could be beaten by a player in at least the top 20.

On the women's side, with the departure of Lindsay Davenport and injuries to Maria Sharapova, it was pretty much just the Williams girls, Serena and Venus, against the Belgian belles, Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin, with the rest of the field just making up the numbers.