First serve
London is gearing up for the final showdown of the ATP season, and all the talk is about the battle for top spot. Even the inclusion of British favorite Andy Murray in the eight-man field for the ATP World Tour Finals can't distract from the fight for the No.1 ranking that will be played out between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

Despite being injured for much of the summer and missing Wimbledon, Nadal still has the opportunity to finish the year ahead of the pack by winning the tournament and hoping Federer slips up. Yet as 2009 draws to a close in men's tennis, it is impossible to shake the sense that this year has merely been the appetizer for what could be a spectacular 2010.

Coming into this season, we all eagerly anticipated that the Federer-Nadal rivalry would heat up further, especially with Federer's mononucleosis condition controlled and overcome. However, Nadal's knee problems prevented them from meeting at the French Open and kept the Spaniard out until his return just before the U.S. Open, when he was still way short of full fitness.

If both the big guns can go into the new campaign at their peak, it will pave the way for a superb year.

Also working his way in the mix is Novak Djokovic, who finally seems to have his motivation levels right and at last is poised to challenge the top two on a regular basis. Murray will look to improve on his disappointing performances at the major championships, and Juan Martin del Potro also has the ability to grow upon his U.S. Open triumph.

If all these stars are fit and healthy, then they will push Federer and Nadal to even greater achievements and allow one of modern sport's most intriguing head-to-head matchups to flourish.

Drop shot
Andre Agassi has received confirmation that he will not be censured for his admitted use of crystal meth during his playing career. ATP president Adam Helfant revealed that his organization is powerless to punish Agassi retroactively as he is no longer playing. Instead, he is free to make extra money from the revelations in his autobiography "Open," effectively being rewarded for the lies he told to cover up his drug use in the late 1990s.

Clean winner
The USTA's annual participation survey showed surprisingly buoyant results, revealing more than 30 million active players now in the United States. The figures were up 12 percent from 2008 and also showed increased numbers across all minority groups.

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It is a good time of year to be in London. Christmas songs are already blaring from every radio station, and Oxford Street is a great place to snap up some festive gifts. Then there is the small matter of the ATP World Tour Finals, where Federer and Nadal slug it out for the top ranking while Andy Murray tries to please his home crowd.

This week's predictions
ATP World Tour Finals (singles): Roger Federer
ATP World Tour Finals (doubles): Daniel Nestor/Nenad Zimonjic

Andre Agassi's role as a humanitarian is beyond dispute, and there is no question that he and wife Steffi Graf are forces for positive change in society.

But as the dust settles on the remarkable revelations in Agassi's autobiography, including his use of the drug crystal methamphetamine, the motivation behind the book becomes ever more puzzling.

Agassi fans will vehemently argue that the eight-time Grand Slam champion penned his memoirs to unburden himself after years of secrecy - or even to provide a warning about the dangers of illicit substances.

Yet the controversial aspects of the book have done little for the image of tennis, from his sniping about greats such as Jimmy Connors to the admission of how he hoodwinked ATP authorities after testing positive for drugs.

The timing of the book's release seems to have been designed for maximum impact (and profit). Nothing wrong with that, of course, but it does appear to fly in the face of suggestions that Agassi's intentions here are simply public-spirited.

With an eight-year cutoff period in place, there is no chance of Agassi being stripped of any of his titles or prize money.

For all the good works Agassi has done, the release of this book will not go down as one of his greatest highlights. He deserves to be judged harshly for both the actions which broke the rules of the game and for the comments which damaged it, regardless of how much time has gone by.

Agassi's gain from this exercise will be the success of the book - he doesn't need a free pass from a forgiving tennis public too.

Drop shot

At a time when tennis' hierarchy is under scrutiny, the interminable wait for some action on Serena Williams' U.S. Open outburst rumbles on. As the two-month mark approaches, is it really too much to ask that an appropriate punishment is finally handed down? Williams is at last established as the clear world No.1 after winning in Doha last week, but the saga surrounding her rant at a line judge is leaving a stain on the women's game.

Clean winner

Ivan Ljubicic has endured a torrid few years with injury and patchy play, but he burst back to form in Lyon last week. The big-serving Croat was the only non-Frenchman in the quarterfinals but outlasted Michael Llodra for the championship.

Use your frequent-flyer miles

While the men are slugging it out in chilly Europe for the final spots in the Tour finals, the vacation destination of Bali in Indonesia is the place to be. The Tournament of Champions is an interesting concept - a season-ending event for the group of players just below the elite - and could catch on.

Last week's winners

St. Petersburg Open: Sergiy Stakhovsky
Bank Austria Tennis Trophy, Vienna: Jurgen Melzer
Grand Prix de Tennis, Lyon: Ivan Ljubicic
Sony Ericsson Championships, Doha: Serena Williams

This week's predictions

Davidoff Swiss Indoors, Basel: Roger Federer
Valencia Open: Nikolay Davydenko
Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions, Bali: Samantha Stosur

First serve

The WTA Tour has one storyline right now and it is riding it for all it's worth. The battle for the No. 1 ranking, a phony war that only exists due to a serious flaw in the rating system, is being billed as the headline attraction ahead of this week's season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships.

It seems to matter little that the real gap between Serena Williams and Dinara Safina is a monstrous one, in terms of form and ability to handle big-time tournament pressure. No, all the WTA is concerned with is that its ludicrous formula has Safina ahead of Williams by 155 points going into Doha. That means whoever performs better over the next week will end the year as No.1.

Despite winning the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and reaching the semifinal of the other two Slams, Williams still can't get officially recognized as the best in the world. She regained top spot a few weeks ago, only for Safina to grab it back thanks to a quirk in the statistics. Safina lost in the first two Slam finals of the year, reached the last four at Wimbledon and looked abysmal before being dumped in the third round at Flushing Meadows.

The furor over the rankings has rumbled on for much of the year, and has stuck in Williams' craw constantly. Yet it might not go away any time soon. Even if Williams wins in Doha to move well clear in the rankings, she has a ton of points to defend at the Australian Open in January and the gap could easily remain tight.

Let's hope that one way or another there will soon be enough points separation between the two players that this ceases to be an issue. The tour needs new talking points, real ones - not those based upon a formulaic anomaly.

Drop shot

London looks set to respond well to winter tennis, with tickets for the ATP Tour finals at the O2 Arena selling fast. However, what should be a thrilling, showpiece event to end the tour year looks set to be decimated by injuries and withdrawals, with several of the top men's players nursing various ailments.

Clean winner

Marcos Baghdatis turned around a difficult year with a remarkable victory in Stockholm last week, defeating Olivier Rochus in the final after being handed a route through when Robin Soderling retired through injury. It was a rare and welcome moment in the spotlight for the former Australian Open finalist, who has spent much of the year scuttling around on the Challenger circuit.

Use your frequent flyer miles

It's off to Qatar this week, where the top eight women of the year go head-to-head in the season-ending championships. No Kim Clijsters unfortunately, given her limited schedule this year, but the Safina-Serena battle provides some interest.

Last week's winners

If Open, Stockholm: Marcos Baghdatis
Kremlin Cup, Moscow: Mikhail Youzhny
BGL Open, Luxembourg: Timea Bacsinsky
Kremlin Cup, Moscow: Francesca Schiavone

This week's predictions

St Petersburg Open, St Petersburg: Victor Hanescu
Bank Austria Tennis Trophy, Vienna: Marin Cilic
Grand Prix de Tennis, Lyon: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Sony Ericsson Championships, Doha: Serena Williams

Roger Federer has not been spotted on the ATP Tour since the U.S. Open final – and don't be too surprised if he takes his extended break all the way into the New Year.

The world No. 1 took time off after his defeat to Juan Martin del Potro at Flushing Meadows to rest up and spend time with his young family, yet was expected to return for the Paris Masters and the year-ending ATP Tour finals in London.

However, rumors out of Switzerland have suggested that Federer is considering keeping a low profile until January in order to be fully fresh and ready for 2010.

It would be a controversial move if Federer decided to skip the Tour finals, and one that would likely bring sanctions from the ATP unless he could prove he was injured. Rafael Nadal, then atop the rankings, pulled out last year.

Federer's year has been outstanding but it is understood he has made regaining the Australian Open crown his first priority for next year.

He was devastated to lose to Nadal in this year's final, with his idol Rod Laver looking on. After losing to Novak Djokovic in the 2008 semifinal, the Swiss feels his preparation for Australia has not been ideal and wants a more structured approach this time around.

Federer remains atop of our power rankings, primarily because most of the leading men have either been out of action or out of form.

Nikolay Davydenko breaks into the list, while Andy Murray and Andy Roddick slip due to inactivity.

Yahoo! Sports Power Rankings

1. (1) Roger Federer - Resting up before the Tour finals

2. (2) Juan Martin del Potro - Targeting a huge 2010

3. (5) Rafael Nadal - Still not back to his pre-injury level

4. (4) Novak Djokovic - Showing solid end-of-year form

5. (3) Andy Murray - Wrist injury is a real concern

6. (NR) Nikolay Davydenko - Superb win in Shanghai

7. (6) Andy Roddick - Ran out of gas at the end of a tough year

First serve

Nikolay Davydenko is experiencing yet another renaissance in his strange career, re-emerging as a force just when it looked as if he was hitting the skids.

Davydenko has spent most of the year in the shadows, plagued by injury and patchy form, and has rarely looked like a top 10 player.

However, he burst into the spotlight in Shanghai last week, clinching his third Masters Series title after knocking off Rafael Nadal in the final.

It offered further proof that Davydenko has the ability to beat the very best when the mood takes him, which appears to be with increasing scarcity.

So often that the Ukrainian-born Russian seems to lack for motivation, like in his tame surrender to Tomas Berdych at Wimbledon this year.

Yet every now and then he plays like a world-beater, fighting for every ball and cranking out ground strokes with metronomic accuracy, just like last week.

Davydenko has always played an exhausting schedule, which normally comprises of more tournament appearances than any other top 10 player.

It's widely speculated that is a major reason why he has never gone all the way in a Grand Slam, with four semifinal and five quarterfinal defeats on his record.

The injuries that slowed Davydenko early in 2009 may have actually proven to be a blessing in disguise. If it prompts a rethink and a reduced schedule in future years, the results could be interesting.

Drop shot

Spare a thought for the two players detained by Swedish police on suspicion of soliciting prostitutes ahead of this week's Stockholm Open. In accordance with Swedish law, the players' names have not been made public, but their identities quickly spread around the tennis grapevine. Before long, a locker-room prankster had filled their cubicles with condoms, dirty magazines and a whip.

Clean winner

Hats off to tough Australian Samantha Stosur, who claimed her first main tour title last week in Osaka, 10 years after turning professional. Stosur, a semifinalist at this year's French Open, climbed to No. 13 in the WTA rankings and has the game to reach the top 10 if she can add some consistency.

Use your frequent flyer miles

Pack your winter woolies and head to Moscow this week for a high-quality combined men's and women's event. The Kremlin Cup features an in-form Davydenko as the men's top seed, but he faces another local hero, Marat Safin, in the first round. Three top 10 women are also featured, including Vera Zvonareva and Jelena Jankovic.

Last week's winners
ATP Masters, Shanghai: Nikolay Davydenko
Generali Ladies, Linz: Yanina Wickmayer
HP Open, Osaka: Samantha Stosur

This week's predictions
If Open, Stockholm: Robin Soderling
Kremlin Cup, Moscow: Mikhail Youzhny
Kremlin Cup, Moscow: Nadia Petrova
BGL Open, Luxembourg: Kim Clijsters

First serve

Exhausted, injured, unhappy, spent, ailing and absent. No, that's not a list of this writer's current grumbles (I'm not absent), but instead it's a rundown on the condition of the six best tennis players on the planet.

While 2009 has been an exceptional season on the men's tour, with drama and intrigue from start to finish, the leading stars of the game are paying the price for their efforts over the past 11 months.

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro and Andy Roddick are all athletes in superb physical condition, but even they have been ground into the dust by the grueling schedule put together by the cash-hungry ATP.

Roddick and Nadal both spoke out this week about the folly of having a tour that begins at the start of January and ends in early December. Sure enough, a few hours later Roddick was the latest victim of the exhaustion curse, being forced to retire hurt from his opening match in Shanghai.

Federer had already decided to stay away, while Murray continues to nurse a wrist injury.

It is understandable that the ATP wants to show off its talent as much as possible, but by continuing to drag out the season like this it does nothing for the spectacle of the sport.

It is simply impossible for the top men to maintain peak performance without adequate rest, and it is time players' concerns were heard.

At least a month needs to be chopped off the campaign, to make sure that the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open, is full of fresh and hungry players, rather than a weary brigade still struggling from the exertions of the previous year.

With its present format, the ATP is digging itself a hole and will have only itself to blame if its showpiece event, the Tour Finals, is populated by a second-rate field after a series of withdrawals.

Drop shot

The future of the Australian Open is again likely to come under scrutiny, after Tennis Australia revealed a record $7 million loss for the past year. Tournament organizers felt it necessary to top up prize money after the Australian dollar's depreciation, but the ongoing difficulties suffered by the national federation will only increase calls for the event to be moved into Asia.

Clean winner

Justine Henin has been given a wildcard into next year's Australian Open as the former No. 1 prepares to make her playing comeback. Asked by Belgian reporters if she could emulate Kim Clijsters by winning her first Slam after returning to action Henin shrugged and said, "Why not?"

Use your frequent flyer miles

Get yourself to Shanghai this week for the latest men's Masters Series event. Novak Djokovic is in fine form, having won in Beijing last week, but expect plenty of upsets as the top men limp toward the end of the season.

Last week's winners

• China Open, Beijing: Novak Djokovic
• Rakuten Japan Open, Tokyo: Jo Wilfried Tsonga
• China Open, Beijing: Svetlana Kuznetsova

This week's predictions

• ATP Masters, Shanghai: Nikolay Davydenko
• Generali Ladies, Linz: Flavia Pennetta
• HP Open, Osaka: Marion Bartoli

Vindication will arrive at last for Serena Williams next Monday, when the WTA rankings computer finally acknowledges what we've all known for quite some time: that Williams, and no one else - certainly not Dinara Safina - is the best women's player in the world.

Thankfully, once official confirmation of the new top spot arrives, then the jokes, jibes and barbed comments from Williams can finally come to an end.

The demise of Safina has been excruciating to watch and was played out in the full glare of the public spotlight. The Russian deserved her ranking on principle - it is not her fault the way the system is constructed. But in recent weeks and months she has performed more like a player ranked outside the top 50, and every loss made the ranking formula seem more and more flawed.

On current form, there is no way we could include her in the latest edition of the Yahoo! Sports Power Rankings, which has a returning entrant this week in Maria Sharapova. Sharapova has struggled with her serve since coming back from a long injury layoff but was outstanding in Tokyo last week, comfortably taking the title.

Yahoo! Sports Power Rankings

1. Serena Williams (1) - regains top spot on WTA rankings next week.
2. Kim Clijsters (2) - taking a rest after Flushing Meadows triumph.
3. Venus Williams (3) - won't look back on 2009 with fondness.
4. Caroline Wozniacki (4) - dipped in form since U.S. Open.
5. Maria Sharapova (NR) - secured first title since return from injury.
6. Svetlana Kuznetsova (5) - French Open champ needs more consistency.
7. Elena Dementieva (6) - her mixed and unpredictable season rumbles on.
8. Jelena Jankovic (NR) - back to form in Tokyo.

First serve

A medical expert would be needed to confirm exactly where an "upper respiratory infection" reaches, but my guess is that choking is one of the side effects. If so, then Ana Ivanovic has been carrying the condition for more than a year.

Ivanovic cited the illness for her decision to pull out of the rest of the season, claiming it has depleted her of the physical reserves needed to cope with life on tour.

However, what has been blatantly and painfully obvious to the tennis world ever since Ivanovic's 2008 French Open win, is that her problems are not physical, but mental.

The choice to call it quits until next year is a blessed respite from forcing us to witness a talented player tie herself into mental knots each week and lose to players with considerably less talent.

Ivanovic's demise has been ugly, a prime example of failing to cope with the spotlight and pressure of being No. 1.

That is no longer an issue and may not be ever again. Ivanovic's performances have tumbled her to 12th in the rankings and she will fall further thanks to inactivity.

Even so, taking time away is almost certainly the right thing to do. So, too, will it be for Dinara Safina, the stricken world No. 1 who is about to lose her title to Serena Williams and is struggling to get a serve in play, let alone beat anybody.

The WTA Tour is concerned about burnout for its younger players and puts participation restrictions in place to combat it.

A more appropriate gesture might be to make sure the top ranking comes with a health warning - ascend to this position at your peril.

Drop shot

One of the sports world's most glamorous marriages crashed and burned last week, as former tennis star Chris Evert and golf legend Greg Norman split just 15 months after getting married.

Unsurprisingly, Laura Andrassy, Norman's jilted wife of 25 years, was in no mood to be charitable to the parted celebrity couple. "Being with Chris is what Greg wanted," Andrassy said to the Palm Beach Post. "Well, he got it." Ouch.

Clean winner

Maria Sharapova looks headed back to the top 10 after an impressive title win in Tokyo last week, her first since returning from a long injury layoff. This was a long way removed from the out-of-sorts Sharapova that floundered against Melanie Oudin at the U.S. Open and the Russian looks ready to challenge for majors once more.

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Beijing is the place to be this week, as tennis returns to the scene of last year's spectacular Olympic Games.

Both the men's and women's tours will be in action - with the ladies event one of the four premier mandatory tournaments that were introduced this year. Rafael Nadal heads the men's draw and will be seeking victory once again - although there is no gold-medal prize this time around.

Last week's winners

Proton Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur: Nikolay Davydenko

PTT Thailand Open, Bangkok: Gilles Simon

Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo: Maria Sharapova

This week's predictions

China Open, Beijing: Novak Djokovic (men), Elena Dementieva (women)

Rakuten Japan Open, Tokyo: Juan Martin del Potro

FIRST SERVE

Rafael Nadal's stomach strain has put his season on lockdown for now, and his absence is having a similar effect on the men's tour.

Nadal will be out of action for a few weeks while he recovers from the abdominal issue he suffered before and during the U.S. Open.

Yet the ripple effect of his absence is having a serious impact on the remainder of the 2009 campaign. Multiple sources in Europe confirmed Nadal's layoff was a major factor behind Roger Federer's decision to skip two forthcoming events in Asia.

Furthermore, Federer is now expected to play only sparingly ahead of the World Tour finals in November. The Swiss master still regards Nadal as his fiercest challenger, and doesn't want his rival to have an advantage of freshness over him heading into next year's Australian Open.

Federer already has received some criticism in Asia for his withdrawal, but it's hard to fault his logic. This approach means he still can have a clear lead as world No. 1 heading into 2010. He also will have plenty of gas in the tank as he tries to wrest away Nadal's Australian crown.

With their places at the Tour finals already assured, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin del Potro also are likely to pare down some of their tournament commitments over the next few weeks.

Players ranked from six through 12 still are slugging it out for Tour finals spots, but in reality, this season feels near completion.

Drop shot

The start of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo resembled a U.S. Open-style women's bloodbath with Dinara Safina, Venus Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova all bowing out against lower-ranked players in their opening matches. Safina was knocked out by 132^nd-ranked Taiwanese qualifier Chang Kai-chen, but the question must be asked -- is any Safina defeat really an upset anymore?

Clean winner

Kimiko Date Krumm's victory in the Hansol Korea Open last week was the latest heart-warming chapter in the Japanese veteran's return to pro tennis. Date Krumm beat Anabel Medina Garrigues in the final on the eve of her 39th birthday and becomes the oldest WTA event winner since Billie Jean King. Her most recent victory before last weekend -- August 1996, in San Diego.

Use your frequent flyer miles

Get yourself to Kuala Lumpur this week for the Malaysian Open, which is the newest addition to the Asian swing of the ATP Tour. There's a strong field hoping to win the inaugural event with Nikolay Davydenko, Fernando Verdasco, Robin Soderling and Fernando Gonzalez competing in the event. Be sure to check out the spectacular Petronas Towers in downtown KL -- a magnificent example of ultra-modern architecture.

Last week's results

BCR Open Romania, Bucharest: Albert Montanes

Open de Moselle, Metz: Gael Monfils

Hansol Korea Open, Seoul: Kimiko Date Krumm

Tashkent Open, Uzbekistan: Shahar Peer

This week's predictions

PTT Thailand Open, Bangkok: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Proton Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur: Robin Soderling

Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo: Caroline Wozniacki

Women's tennis has been shaken up dramatically over the past year and Justine Henin's return is bound to prompt even greater change.

Until she earns enough official ranking points Henin will enter the draws at events next year unseeded -- and will be the player absolutely no one wants to face in the early rounds.

It surely won't be long before the Belgian former world No. 1 is in the mix at the big events, adding yet another element of intrigue following Kim Clijsters' dramatic return at the U.S. Open.

This means the women's picture is drastically different from 12 months ago. There's an almost entirely new group of players in the top eight, the ones most likely to contend when it matters most.

Where are you, Jelena Jankovic? Where are you, Ana Ivanovic? And where will you be in 12 months time, Dinara Safina, if you continue to impersonate an also-ran?

Serena Williams remains at the top of our list of the most dominant players on tour, but Clijsters goes straight in at No. 2 after her New York triumph.

Likewise, Juan Martin del Potro rises to the second spot on the men's list after securing his first Grand Slam title, though Roger Federer still is clearly at the top.

Previous rankings are in parentheses.

MEN

1.(1) Roger Federer - Heartbreak at Flushing Meadows but still the man to beat

2. (3) Juan Martin del Potro - U.S. Open champ is now the king of hard courts

3. (2) Andy Murray - Disappointing end to such a promising year

4. (6) Novak Djokovic - Has been solid and more motivated since the middle of summer

5. (4) Rafael Nadal - Complicated stomach injury is a genuine concern

6. (5) Andy Roddick - Serving huge but still has holes in his game

7. (NR) Marin Cilic - Gave a glimpse of his potential in New York

8. (NR) Fernando Gonzalez - Has had an impressive and consistent year

WOMEN

1. (1) Serena Williams - Tantrums and tetchiness but still the dominant woman in the game

2. (NR) Kim Clijsters - Glorious return lit up the U.S. Open. Can she sustain it?

3. (4) Venus Williams - Won't have especially fond memories of 2009

4. (NR) Caroline Wozniacki - Could become the next big star thanks to her smart game

5. (6) Svetlana Kuznetsova - Still too much inconsistency and missed a big chance in New York

6. (3) Elena Dementieva - Shocking defeat to Melanie Oudin ruined her U.S. Open

7. (NR) Flavia Pennetta - Capable of beating anyone on her day

8. (NR) Yanina Wickmayer - Expect to hear a lot more about this emerging Belgian