By Caroline Cheese

Mauresmo tops rankings

Women's tennis has provided some welcome twists and turns in 2004, but at the US Open the sport seemed to lose the plot altogether.

American television was crying out for a sentimental Lindsay Davenport-Jennifer Capriati final, but was left with little-known Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova beating a compatriot whose serve would be a weakness even at club level.

Most bizarre of all, it ended with Amelie Mauresmo replacing Justine Henin-Hardenne as the world number one.

The Frenchwoman may one day deserve the accolade, but as it stands she has never won a Grand Slam title and her excruciating tendency to choke her way out of winning positions seems only to be worsening.

So how has the WTA Tour found itself promoting a game whose world number one is patently not the best player in the world?

Mauresmo has undoubtedly had a good year, winning three titles and reaching the last eight or better at each Grand Slam, but her ascent to the top of the rankings has more to do with her ability to avoid injury.

MAURESMO HEAD-TO-HEADS v S Williams Won 1 Lost 7 v V Williams Won 1 Lost 5 v Henin-Hardenne Won 3 Lost 3 v Clijsters Won 2 Lost 7 v Davenport Won 3 Lost 7

While Mauresmo has played 19 tournaments in the last 12 months, Davenport has competed in 16, Henin-Hardenne in 14, Venus Williams in 13, Kim Clijsters 12, and Serena Williams in just eight.

Davenport would have been the number one had she won the title at Flushing Meadows, but it was somehow appropriate that the outstanding player of the hardcourt season should have her hopes scuppered by injury in the semi-finals.

In New York, the WTA announced that it was finally taking steps to address the problem by making several changes, including extending the off-season.

After her quarter-final defeat to Capriati, Serena stated that she still considered herself the best player in the world.

A serious knee injury has prevented her from proving that theory but even aside from that, Serena's focus has drifted.

NUMBER ONES SINCE 1975 A Mauresmo J Henin-Hardenne K Clijsters S Williams V Williams J Capriati L Davenport M Hingis S Graf A Sanchez Vicario M Seles T Austin M Navratilova C Evert

When she collected her sixth Grand Slam title at Wimbledon last year, there was a real possibility that she could go on and stake her claim to go down as the greatest ever.

But since her return from injury in March, she has appeared less interested in making sporting history and more focused on forging her reputation as the self-styled "entertainer" of the game.

Asked if her biker gear at the US Open restricted her movement, Serena responded that she did not mind being uncomfortable as long as she "looked nice".

For the first time in six years, neither Williams sister holds a Grand Slam title and Venus' disappointing displays in New York do not bode well for the older sibling's hopes of ending a barren run stretching back two years.

Serena undoubtedly has the ability to put the family back at the top of the tennis tree - whether she still has the drive remains in doubt.

Russia now holds three of the four Grand Slam titles and makes up five of the world's top 10, but none of the players have yet proved they will consistently challenge for the majors.

Wimbledon winner Maria Sharapova is a potential world number one but the teenager needs time to develop her game further.

New US Open champion Kuznetsova is also still adjusting to life at the top while Anastasia Myskina's poor form since winning the French Open suggests she may struggle to add to that trophy.

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Elena Dementieva has reached two Grand Slam finals this year, despite a woeful serve which barely generates enough power to get the ball over the net.

The rise of the Russians means women's tennis has more strength in depth than perhaps ever before, but injuries and indifferent form have meant genuine rivalries between the world's best have not yet developed.

The coming year should see the cream rise to the top of the women's game.

At least that is what the WTA will be hoping.