She’s Already at the Top, So What’s Next?

1992 - “One day I’ll be on this court and I will win,” said a 10-year-old Justine Henin to her mother, Françoise, after seeing the final between Steffi Graf and Monica Seles at Roland Garros.

2003 - Justine dedicates her first Grand Slam (French Open) title to her late mother, who died of cancer when Henin was 12.

2007 - The 25-year-old Henin posts her best tennis season to date - 63-4 record, 10 titles, two Grand Slams (including her fourth French Open), 25-match winning streak, 14 wins out of 16 tournaments.

Despite the off-court emotional roller coaster in her personal life, including a divorce from her husband of four years and a reunion with her estranged father and siblings, the Belgian tennis star Justine Henin has found enough strength and stamina to establish her dominance on the women’s tour in 2007.

It seems very conceivable that Henin will continue her new-found dominance with at least two Grand Slams looking likely in 2008.

Even though she needs to defend all her ranking points, she has more than a 3000-point cushion between herself and world number two Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Justine’s priorities for the season are winning Wimbledon (the only Grand Slam title still eluding her) and defending her Olympic Gold medal in Beijing, even though she has expressed some concerns about the city’s air pollution that triggers her asthma. Henin, who missed the Australian Open this year due to her marriage break-up, has also set her sights on reclaiming the Australian Open title which she won in 2004.

Here is how I see the competition stacking up against the five-foot-five Belgian.

Svetlana Kuznetsova (2-15) is prone to fade in big matches.

Serena Williams (6-6) still struggles with her form and concentration, though she is gunning for revenge against the Belgian for the three Grand Slam losses to her in 2007.

Jelena Jankovic (0-9) thinks that it is almost statistically and emotionally impossible to beat Henin.

Maria Sharapova (2-6) and Venus Williams (7-2) seem to be the world number one’s closest competitors, but Justine still has the edge in health, consistency and confidence over both.

And then there are the unpredictable ones . . .

With her new-found marital status and improved relationships with family members, it will be interesting to see whether this new “Emotional Henin” will boost the “All-business Henin’s” performance in 2008 or will make her less focused and more prone to inconsistencies.

If Henin stays healthy, mentally fresh, and motivated then she has the potential to be one of the greatest women’s tennis players.

This post is part of On the Baseline Tennis News’ 2008 Players to Watch Series.

(Sources: Justine Henin official site, Sony Ericsson WTA tour site, photos by onthebaseline.com)