Miami Crisis Center

Greetings. I imagine you're all primed for the women's final at the Sony Ericsson Open. It's Venus Williams v. Kim Clijsters, and if you want to read my thoughts on that match-up, check over at ESPN. I don't expect fitness to be an issue for Clijsters - not with a full off day to recover from her chaotic battle with Justine Henin.

If you read the transcript of Clijsters presser following her match with Henin, you'll see this quote, which Clijsters delivered while discussing how she let her big lead slip away: "Instead of being right on top of the baseline and dominating the rallies from there, I felt like I was being pushed back a little bit. I think when you're - it's a  big difference for your opponent if you stand a meter behind the baseline (as opposed to right on it). For me, it takes twice the effort to try to create the same kind of pressure for her, and that gives her a lot more time to be dominant as well."

The big difference today, I think, is Venus's serve. If she serves well, she can deny Clijsters her oft-repeated determination to play from inside the court - to pressure and force the action by taking the ball on the rise. If Venus can serve at 60 percent or better, she'll probably be in excellent shape.

-- Pete