Jelena Jankovic thought about giving up tennis and going back full time to university in Serbia after a terrible start to 2006 when she lost 10 straight matches. But the 21-year-old daughter of two economists staged a remarkable turnaround to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal and finish the year ranked 12th with a 44-17 record.

James Blake and Carlos Moya had it all figured out. Or so they said. They met in the Sydney International final last weekend, already knowing they’d face each other in the first round of the Australian Open on Tuesday. At the trophy presentations, Moya joked that he and Blake had an agreement: If Blake won the Sydney title — and he did in three sets — Moya would win in Melbourne.

Andy Roddick was grumpy and the Australian Open crowd smelled a possible first-round upset. Roddick argued line calls and lost a first-set marathon tiebreaker to his 212th-ranked opponent. But as a cool morning haze burned off under the summer sun, Roddick came through with a 6-7 (18), 7-6 (2), 6-3, 6-3 victory Monday against French wild card Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.

Serena Williams was back at the Australian Open, answering all the usual questions about her knee (fine), her dress (controversial) and her injured sister Venus (surprisingly sharp in practice). After playing just four events in 2006 due to a chronic knee injury, Serena Williams nearly dropped out of the top 100 in the year-end rankings for the first time in her career, finishing at 95.

Mardy Fish rebuilt his forehand and his confidence along with a badly injured wrist that stalled his career in 2005. The work is paying off. The American on Monday ousted fourth-seeded Ivan Ljubicic from the Australian Open in the first round. Fish finished 2003 ranked 20th and in 2004 won the Olympic silver medal and helped the United States into the Davis Cup final before he was hit by hip…

Croatian and Serbian spectators kicked each other and used flag poles as weapons during brief scuffles Monday at the Australian Open. Police and private security guards at the year’s first Grand Slam event ejected 150 people from the Melbourne Park venue after the violence, which organizers, players and community leaders condemned.

Kim Clijsters is 24 and looking forward to early retirement. The Belgian, seeded fourth at the Australian Open, is weary of all the injuries and intends to stop playing at the end of the year. She is ready to start a family and plans to marry Brian Lynch, an American who plays basketball in Belgium, after her final Wimbledon this summer.

ATP chairman Etienne de Villiers has an edict for his elite tennis players: start treating fans with more respect. In the past week, seven players withdrew from the Sydney International. The most controversial was Russian player Nikolay Davydenko, who was later fined $10,000 for saying that it was a “small tournament” that “nobody cares about.” De Villiers said he was concerned that 383 players…

All the brilliant numbers came down to one simple equation for Roger Federer: He was two sets short of a Grand Slam season. Federer returns to Melbourne Park as the overwhelming favorite and defending Australian Open champion, one of three majors he won while compiling a 92-5 record. Four of his losses were against second-ranked Rafael Nadal, including the French Open final when he won the first…

He’s got a calf injury, a new coach who should be on the golf course, and an extreme lack of match practice. Lleyton Hewitt says that’s not enough to undermine his confidence. The former top-ranked Hewitt figures his mental toughness on the court — and an ability to overcome some recent adversity — will give him as good a shot as any of the top players in the Australian Open when it begins…

The Australian Open will be the first Grand Slam event without a seeded American woman. Serena Williams is vowing to do what she can to end that streak at one tournament. “I take the blame for that,” Williams said Saturday as she worked on her final preparations for the year’s first major. “I’ll try to make sure it doesn’t happen anymore.” Not all of the blame can be put on Williams’ shoulders for…

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have some work to do to meet in the Australian Open final. Defending champion Federer, bidding for his 10th career Grand Slam title, could meet last year’s surprise finalist, Marcos Baghdatis, in the quarterfinals. The top-seeded Federer also has U.S. Open semifinalist Mikhail Youzhny and former top-ranked Juan Carlos Ferrero as potential third- and fourth-round…

Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova topped the lists of seeded players at the Australian Open, with organizers sticking to world rankings. Federer, the defending champion, is aiming for his 10th Grand Slam singles title and has been atop the men’s rankings since February 2004. Sharapova moved to the top of the women’s seedings list at Melbourne Park after No.

No. 3-ranked Nikolay Davydenko was fined $10,000 for comments he made about the Sydney International tennis tournament after retiring from his first-round match with a foot problem. After retiring from his match on Wednesday, Davydenko described the Sydney International as “small tournament” that “nobody cares about.” ATP chairman Etienne De Villiers said in a statement that he felt the fine was…

Venus Williams withdrew from the Australian Open on Wednesday because of an aggravated left wrist injury. She joins top-ranked Justine Henin-Hardenne on the sideline for the first Grand Slam of the season. Williams told organizers she aggravated the wrist, which kept her from playing in the Hopman Cup mixed teams competition in Perth last week.