Now, normally, you’d think that, while watching the Women’s Singles Finals, I’d be rooting against the player who ousted both Serena and Venus Williams in back to back matches at the US Open.  But, I have to give credit where credit is due.  Justine Henin is a force to be reckoned with and she deserved the win she earned.  No one could match her.  Even 4th-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova looked like an amateur when matched against Henin.

It’s thrilling to see a player who is so powerful and driven and deserving of success, particularly in women’s sports.  From the first match I ever saw her play against Serena Williams earlier in the week, I was in awe of her skill and determination.  Even though, physically, she’s much shorter and smaller than either Serena or Venus Williams, she made quick work of them both, leaving the pair shaking their heads in disbelief that they were so easily beaten, given both of their winning records against Henin.

This past week and a half of watching the Open matches have re-inspired my interest in getting some lessons and learning to play properly.  As much enthusiasm as I have for the game, I’ve never been much good at it – lots of attempts have entailed spending more time retrieving the ball outside the fence or on the other side of the court than returning it to my playing partner.  I did have the opportunity on Friday to play with a couple of friends at a local park and was surprised at how much better I was at actually controlling the ball (though there were still a few over-the-fence ‘homers’ to be had) than any of my previous attempts.  The improvement I saw from when I first got to the court to when we left an hour or so later was significant and I had a couple of really nice, aggressive just-over-the-net-and-down-the-line shots, too.

A couple of years ago, I learned to play squash and even borrowed a tutorial video from the local library to learn about various types of shots.  I quickly improved and began regularly beating my opponent who had played on many occasions before.  So, I’m thinking that perhaps the squash experience is why my non-existent tennis game could have improved when I haven’t practiced at all in probably two years or more.

At any rate, I’m looking forward to learning about something that I’ve been interested in for a very long time and to seeing how much of an aptitude I have!