Halep, Wozniacki lead the pack

With Serena out, Australian Open crown is anyone's

MELBOURNE－Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki spearhead the charge to succeed Serena Williams at an Australian Open left wide open by the withdrawal of the defending champ and new mom.

A pregnant Williams sealed her 23rd Grand Slam singles title and seventh Melbourne Park crown a year ago, but last week announced she wouldn't defend her title, saying she was "super close" but not quite ready to compete after giving birth in September.

With the 36-year-old having to wait to equal Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, the tournament is there for the taking by a host of others, led by world No 1 Halep, second-ranked Wozniacki and fourth-ranked Elina Svitolina.

Last year there were two first-time Grand Slam winners while Serena was on maternity leave－Jelena Ostapenko at the French Open and Sloane Stephens at the US Open.

But their chances in Melbourne look slim. Stephens hasn't won a match on tour since her Flushing Meadows triumph, and Ostapenko was far from her attacking best in first-round losses in Shenzhen and Sydney in the past week.