Vika played brilliantly today and fully deserved to win her First GS and World no. 1 ranking. Many congratulations to this young rising star.

Sharapova didn't play the level of tennis that was required at this stage but then everyone has their ups and downs in life. It would be wrong to assume that she will never win a GS again. Judging by her character in the past (how she has risen back from a career threatening injury ) she will now try even harder to reach her goals.

On Sharapova's loss today, my two cents -"The best people find strength in the misery - Lost Hope? http://bit.ly/wb2oSM

Azarenka deserved it...hopefully she continues her style of play.

I think Sabine Lisicki will be a real threat in 2012...what do you think?

Great articles at http://fit-2-hit.com

I met Azarenka a a photo shoot in Miami

http://www.youtube.com/user/sophialenore?blend=3&ob=0

Welcome to the top spot, Belarus's talented and beautiful #1!!!

Keep making those donuts - and serving those bagels!

i personally think kvitova is a better player thn azarenka and won all her meeting with azarenka last year which included the madrid masters final on clay,wimbledon semis,and wta championships.if kvitova didnt choke all those bp in the 3rd she would of beaten azarenka,well done to her and maria,well not maria as she had a horror show.i think she might want to forget it quickly.

aza is better mover and athlete than maria 10x,she is a poor mans(female equivilant anyway) of djokovic but he is on a diffrent planet to most

i hope no1 doesnt ruin and dictate her life,yes she has a slam but stosur has a slam,sciavone,li etc.i think the no1 is a interesting battle and it might come down to the clay season and outdoor hardcourts of North america.kvitova is the btter all surface player,clay,hard and grass.aza struugles on clay and quick hard courts,she isnt powerful enough

cant wait for the main event tommorow djokovic v nadal,nole in a tight 4 sets

Moderators - aren't you sick of these people spamming your website? I know I am

I am really pleased by the outcome of this Australian Open. Azarenka and Kvitova both confirmed that they are here to stay, they are no fluke. What an exciting time for women's tennis! I can't wait to watch this 2012 season unfold. Kvitova has the edge on grass and indoor courts while Azarenka should capitalize more on hardcourts. On clay the contest should be pretty even.
As for Sharapova, I think it's great to have THE biggest name of them all back in the mix and if she keeps working on her serve she can be a real threat again. Nevertheless things will get tougher for her as her two younger rivals can only get better from now on: Azarenka can easily match her power and is also faster and more flexible, while Kvitova can outclass her with far superior shot-making abilities.
It would also be great to see Caroline Wozniacki improve her game and challenge the top spot again, although she's going to face some tough months: she's got many points to defend at Dubai, Doha, Indian Wells and if she doesn't do so she might as well slip outside the top five in the blink of an eye. For someone who has been number one for almost two years it could be quite a shock.

@Larry - about Wozniacki: even if she only makes the QFs in those three tournaments, she has an excellent chance of staying in the top five. Radwanska should catch her for 4th, as she has few points defend in the same tournaments. But, whether Wozniacki holds 4th or drops to 5th, the top three have some separation on the rest of the top players. She'll be in about the same position as David Ferrer among the men - best of the rest.

Thoroughly heartbroken for Maria, but very proud of Vika - she showed lots of maturity, character, and determination to win this. Couldn't watch the match but checked the score on my cell phone: 6-3, 5-0. A minute later i refreshed and it was over. I wondered if Maria was injured in the 1st set, but then checked the news headlines. Nope, she was pummeled. The only consolation to take from this is that I know Maria will be gracious and sportsmanlike in defeat.

A very well played match from Azarenka - She the worthy winner and #1 - As much as it sadden me to say this - Masha wasn't even close - I never expected that Azarenka could bagel her -

Congratulations Victoria!!

Poor Masha - I feel so sorry for her - to lose in such a way - Twice in a slam final now - Will she ever be able to go all the way? - Maybe the FO? - She really deserves to win at least ONE more slam as a reward for all her hard work to make this come back - Don't give up Masha - we need you on the tour

What's women's tennis come to....

I think it's a shame that Azarenka won. She goes on court screaming and moaning like a moron and now ESPN fans are going to see highlights of this stupid screaching and thats it.

To say it's gonna hurt women's tennis is like saying that iceberg hurt the titanic. Azarenka is pretty much the only woman on the tour who can damage women's tennis this severely as a champion. It's a true shame and a pity.

OK, lets move on to the men's final. SOmeone grab some police tape: "Nothing to see here folks, nothing to see. Move along now....."

@sigmud she was. She give all the credit to Victoria and her speech was very nice and a little bit heartbreaker because you can see in Maria's eyes how much she wanted it. Vika played amazing and is a deserved winner. But I'm sad for Maria because she deserves at least ONE more Slam. The bad thing is that she only will have like 4 chances before her career starts to goes downhill (I'm guessing that Maria's best chances to win another slam will be in USO 12, AO 13 and USO 13. Wimbledon is getting too fast for her and she doesn't move well enough to ever win the French. But it would be nice if she can shut me down, though ;-)

Sharapova is so overrated.

"it only took a loose error or two from Sharapova, in the third game, to spin the match 180 degrees and transform an extremely nervy Azarenka into an extremely imposing one"

Hi Steve, like you i was surprised at how quickly the turn-around happened!
It was kind of painful to see her so nervy to start with, and so quickly broken, but her wins against both Radwanska and Clijsters had shown that she could stay the distance even if things weren't going her way for a time. I was happy to give her a set to get her game together, but it only took a couple of Sharapova errors. Amazing!

I don't begrudge her the bagel set either. I think it shows her complete respect for Maria's formidable talents if she gets even as much as a toehold in. Congrats to Vika, Comizrs to Maria. I really enjoyed the match (even if it was a bit short) Thumbs up to Paes/Stepanek & Bryans for filling the void. That was a very entertaining match as well!

I simply detest these American commentators especially on ESPN. They are talking about Sharapova was "off her game". Sharapova was playing the game of her life!! She was hitting the balls hard, moving around as best as she could and trying to do what she does out there. Instead of giving Azarenka the credit for playing a superb and talent filled game that her opponent had no response to, they resort to "Sharapova was off her game"....give me a break. Azarenka rocked that match!

Steve thank u for superb observations on a final
I slept thru to tune out the shrieks.

Sharapova: "Well, so I'm prettier. Boys like me better..."

tom from cali. before you post something, do your research about Maria and don't be a f...... ignorant! she's a three times champion! she deserve some respect.....

Viktoria victoriously !

Right on Fedalovic...

Wouldn't even consider watching (or listening to) this train wreck of unimaginative so-called tennis

I expected a bit more dramatic final. Maria surprised me with how she just folded in the second set.

I think there will be several swaps on the no.1 ranking this year. Wozniacki has a good chance to grab it in the end of the season and I have no doubts she will do everything she can to do it. For now, I think Kvitova (if she doesn't drop her level) will challenge Azarenka.

It's been said a million times, almost to the point that the topic is getting way too boring to discuss. I can't help but agreeing with Fedalovic and Jerkstore.
We had many players who used to grunt in the past, but NOBODY reached the annoying level of Azarenka and Sharapova. I looove watching women's tennis and I am a true supporter of the tour, so it's sad to find out that 90% of my friends at the tennis club where I play didn't watch today's final because of the noise.
The WTA needs to do something fast NOW, what kind of management does the WTA Tour have?! It's ridicolous! Start telling the umpires and officials to use the hindrance rule.

i think the record head to head between vika and masha is going to be likely the record between masha and henin or between masha and serena, all for sure, after many years fall out the slam i thing masha is now like dementieva ver 2, she's starting to nervous and scary in slam final, what a shame!her head not cold anymore, it's rushing hot like kim 11 years ago ,hunger the title so badly, but not try as hard as she can cause the threaten of injured make her lack all of what she fight with everything she have!

@ Fedalovic, jerkstore:

If you don't like a particular player or don't care to watch a particular match, fine. To each their own. But don't try to pass off your personal preferences as absolute.

"To say it's gonna hurt women's tennis is like saying that iceberg hurt the titanic. Azarenka is pretty much the only woman on the tour who can damage women's tennis this severely as a champion." That is a stunningly ignorant and moronic comment, even by the sometimes abysmal standards of this forum.

Sure, some people don't like Azarenka's noises, and they are going to have the same kind of knee-jerk reaction you have. But not everyone is like that. There are plenty of tennis fans, like me, who are willing to look (listen?) past the noise and recognise that Azarenka is playing some great power tennis.

After a shaky start, she got hold of her nerves, settled in and delivered a thorough beat-down to Sharapova. I would like to see how you armchair experts would fare in the same situation, in front of that audience, with that pressure. And she played some finesse shots, too, not one-dimensional at all. Of course, jerkstore (nomen est omen?) wouldn't know, because by his own admission, he did not even watch the match. Isn't it wonderful when guys comment on matches they did not watch, and then rate the quality of the allegedly "unimaginative" tennis they did not see? Yeah, I guess you need imagination for that. Or maybe you just need to be a lazy and self-important.

As for the shrieking of Azarenka (or Sharapova, for that matter), this has been an issue for some viewers of women's tenns since Monica Seles. Personally, I think it is blown way out of proportion. I can understand that some people find the noises annoying or funny, but the way it is repetitively and obsessively brought up as a subject just smacks of complaining for the sake of having something to complain about. And at the end of the day, it is superficial criticism. It's like the complaints young Agassi used to get about his hair and earrings, or the complaints Petkovic gets about her victory dances. As if any of that was more important than the tennis.

For me, it is a complete non-issue. I would rather watch someone's tennis than obsess about their hairstyle, earrings, choice of attire, victory gestures or ball-striking noises. And you know what, I like Azarenka's tennis a lot. It may not be the most subtle brand of the game, but it is powerful and atheletic and gritty and not devoid of the occasional finesse shot. And finally, after the Safinas and Wozniackis, we have a female number 1 again who has won a slam.

Azarenka is a deserving number 1. Off the court, she has personality and wit. In my view, she will make a good ambassador for the sport.

Sharapova lost 14 of 17 points when she put a second serve in play. Without taking anything away from Azarenka's returns, I have to think that has as much to do with Sharapova's movement, or lack of it, post service action, as it does with the potency of her second serve (or, lack of it).

Azarenka played brilliantly. I think I may be a convert now. I'm may also be done with complaining about the grunting. Maybe.

But ultimately, I'm so glad to see sanity restored to the WTA rankings.

I found it very weird that Maria will win the coin toss and elected to receive,that sends bad vibe to your opponent that may be you're not confident serving firstb and rather break than be broken

Maria used to be gutsy all right but I have seen her twice fold under pressure,that's not your game Maria,no guts, no glory!

@Mister L
I love Vika too, she has the talent and the looks to become a true icon. What an incredible athlete and ball-striker she is. I hate to say that everything is being ruined by that awful sound she makes though. She and Sharapova are absolutely painful to hear. And the disturbing thing is that they don't do it for physical reasons, they do it to distract their opponent. They obviously cheat.
When she won Wimbledon at 17, Sharapova was neither grunting on every shot nor she was so loud, she had more like a Venus/Serena/Nadal approach to the grunt. And Azarenka didn't grunt AT ALL during her match against Bartoli last November in Istanbul.
So that means they don't need to make that noise, they WANT to make that noise. Huge difference.

And I forgot to mention to all people who love Rock and Brett Michaels he rocked Indianapolis in the super bowl village yesterday for free,that's right free concert!

Me I just focused on his blue eyes!wowza!

@ Justin Pittsburgh:

Is the noise "obviously" done on purpose to cheat? I don't think it is so obvious. You can make different levels of noise in different matches, depending on the tension and on how you feel mentally and physically on that day.

Call me naive, but I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. I think cheating is a harsh allegation, and "obvious" cheating even more so, and that the evidence is just not sufficient to say this beyond doubt.

Love her game, always have. So glad to see her win her first slam!

Forgot to say, I also ove her shorts!

One of my friends and I tried to capture one of my favorite styles of writing: The Steve / Kamakshi conversations .. and combined it into a men's preview:

http://tennismusings.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/redemption-or-reiteration/

Look, a #1 woman with a Slam! FINALLY! This makes all the difference, like Vika or not. Caro had 67 weeks to get it done, and didn't. I'm not a huge fan of Azarenka, but I feel like she deserves every bit of this.

It's so delightful to see Vika's utter joy, when for a long time she seemed so miserable on court (never off).

Sharapova has the same problems with movement that the really tall guys have, those long legs don't help her get to balls any faster/easier. Her movement is stiff and encumbered. None of which has anything at all to do with her shoulder and the surgery of 2008. In the fours years since, the women's game has caught up to her.

@Shelley don't be ridiculous. Azarenka played brilliantly but certainly Maria, while not playing terribly, was nowhere near close to her best or the level she'd been playing at all tournament. 15 winners to 30 UFEs is not so hot.

Sharapova's movement was definitely inferior to Vika's, but Maria just simply made more errors even when she was in control of the point.

Wonderful to see Vika's FH become so much more of a weapon this tournament. It was definitely a weakness before and like Murray's it's really improved.

skip1525-

Definately agree that her points won on 2nd serve was atrocious. But that really wasn't the reason why Maria lost. As it was she got pretty much beaten-up through every part of the game. I ask you though, don't you think Maria must work on her serve constantly? I do. I know she's got to limit to some degree becasue of the surgery, but nonetheless, it being so much a part of her game to dictate points off her serve, I'd think she have a pretty good handle on it by now. I wonder why it has been such a problem for her for so long.

Rob S-

Yes indeed. Vika did it the old-school way, consistant rise till she was right on the edge of breaking through into the elite, then she sealed-the-deal with an emphatic slam victory and claimed the #1 spot. That just awesome man. That's the way it is supposed to be done, not this new-school idea of playing a lot of tournaments cosistantly well and out-gaining points over others who play 6 less tours. Bull-bleep. Hats off to Vika the warrior princess. You showed us all girl.

Northernboy-

Yeah but make no mistake that was totally Azarenka's doing. Azarenka was put the heat on Maria by hitting mostly hard flat groundstokes way back at the back baseline. I was watching the match in the last game Az serving for the match, Jo Drurry commented that Azarenka took just a little pace off and eased-up just a little, that was when Maria made a little noise in that last game, on a crosscourt shot Az did take a little off, Maria got into position and cracked a 2 handed forehand down the line for a winner. Jo Drurry said straight away, that's what happens when Vika get's a little complacent. Maria's ready for it.

Well, as we all all know, that was the end of that. Victoria flat out busted Maria in the mouth, and Maria didn't have enought to answer. Let's cool it with the "Maria had an unusual high ufe's" number. Those were the type of "Maria couldn't do anything about it ufe's."

This is what I love and appreciate about the WTA. The winning players will always surprise you, it's a bit unpredictable. I love the ATP especially David Ferrer, but the Semi's are fairly predictable. They are entertaining and cool to watch, but I derive much enjoyment from the WTA. Once Vika got on track in the Final, it was "whoosh". But, you have to give Maria credit for how far she was come along since 2010. Maria's game and battle-spirit and her warrioress whoop-cry is what got me hooked on tennis to begin with. Maria is a very inspiring woman and quite a success story. When I read between-the-lines on her comment's from her Presser's, I think she's quite intectual and I'm impressed at how wise beyond her young years she is. Maria must have picked up quite an education moving in the stratosphere that she lives in. I really wish she would write a book and title it "Sharapova". I would buy this book the second it is released. Simply put, Maria is an amazing woman. Next. Vika. You Go Girl! I saw you at Indian Well's last year and I was sorry that you got leg injury vs Caro. I'm so proud of your 2012 accomplishment's. It was exciting to see you win it. The new number UNO. Good going.
Have a great season,( in jazz terms) Vika, you're a cool cat, you can riff out there. Sam and you are a great team. When you looked at your box and team and you mouthed " what happened", I had tears in my eyes for your win. You guys are lucky to be pro tennis players.

YAY! No more Slam-less #1...and better yet...a grunter! How will they ever get rid of them now!!? ;) JK!

*kisses* for Vika! Keep'at'er!

Bittersweet. glad the mustache-wearing screamer lost miserably. But it had to take another screecher, one who walks like a man, to beat her.

Ok, I am a huge Sharapova fan and really hated the fact that Azarenka won. However, I;m objective enough to realize that Vika played an outstanding match. her forehand, usually a liability was flawless, and her movement is definitely much better than Maria's. However, people must also realize that azarenka played a match that featured her best possible tennis, while sharapova, though not playing terrible, didn't play that well at all. Azarenka is often a bad match up for sharapova, but the matche's that maria has won featured decent movement, good shotmaking, but fewer unforced errors than Azarenka. as Sharapova proved against Kvitova, when she is firing her shots, and taking advantage of her opportunities, her mental strength and talent almost always make her the winner. Against Azarenka, Maria made too few winners when she had a lot of opportunities. Kudos to azarenka though. in Miami she had some loose points and almost let Maria back into the match, and it's a true testament to her improvement that she didnn't have a repeat. Bottom line, these girls don;t have the pure determination like Maria and I believe they will stay on top and continue to beat Maria only when they are playing amazing. I mean, Kvitova didn't play poorly in hetr semi-final. it was simply a matter of her not taking her chances, and maria capitalizing. if azarenka and petra can sustain their flawless play, Maria's chances will definitely diminish. Btw, to whoever says Maria is overrated, keep in mind that theoretically, she could have 7 slams right now (4 of which coming from 2005 alone). in 2005 she got the semi's of every major (quater's in french) but lost (in either 3 or two tight sets) tot he eventual champion each time (serena, justine, venus, kim). Oh, and sharapova won her slams in a considerably mroe difficult period of tennis that petra and vika. at least they don;t truly have kim, mauresmo, henin, dementieva, davenport, hingis, serena, or venus to contend with!

A few random thoughts...

Congrats to Azarenka. She is a worthy number 1.

Congrats to Wozniaki for being a worthy caretaker No. 1 for the last year and a half. That is a great accomplishment. However, she will never see it again. Can anyone really seeing her beating the big guns at a grand slam event?

Kvitova was just not emotionally ready to grab the brass ring. Her match against Sharapova reminded me of a match between Federer and Roddick at the Canadian Open in 2003 where if Federer won he would have been #1, but he wasn't ready and he lost in three sets. Once Kvitova becomes ready to be #1 she will, and be there for a long time.

In the meantime, the powers that be need to get rid of the shrieking! The game will be better off for it.

I'm sure we all agree that Maria and Victoria deserve the same prize money as Raffa and Novak.

To argue otherwise is to be guilty of the most overt sexism, and also to ignore the evidence before one's eyes, because each final demanded the same amount of time and effort to win.

Zack M -

I totally agree that Sharapova's mental strength puts her a class above many players. If Azarenka had slacked off a little bit, Sharapova could just have turned this final around. The will power of Sharapova gives her an upper hand in tight matches, as shown in her semi against Kvitova as well as her 13-1 record for three setters last year. What Sharapova lacks most is some variety in her game. She just can't find that extra gear or switch to a plan B when her opponent is playing well.

A real top player needs to be technically superior and mentally tough. Many of the top women have great skills but few have the mental strength of Sharapova. That's why we've got so many different slam winners but no one to dominate just yet.

As for the future, I can't wait to see a dominant player like Henin or Serena once was. Unfortunately our choices are so limited. Azarenka seems to be mentally the most mature among the youngsters but I'm not sure if her game is big enough yet. She seemed to move well and to have consistent powerful groundstrokes but her serve was not strong (Sharapova clearly didn't punish that enough). If the tennis we saw at AO is her best tennis, then I have to say an in form Serena (who beat her at USO), Clijsters, Li (who beat her twice in GS last year) or Kvitova is probably still a little bit better. As for Kvitova, she plays beautiful power tennis. I cannot image how scary a player she'd be if she's equipped with Sharapova's mentality. But until she cleans up those loose games and out-of-nowhere errors and learns how to better construct points with her already big game, she will have some struggle. I think the key lies in her motivation.

roGER-

The girls should get the same prize money and they should play five sets instead of three. Judging by the amount of time the girls spend in the gym, this shouldn't be a problem at all. Part of the volatility in women's game is due to the fact that they play three sets. Once a girl is down one set the match is half over. A girl with a bad start doesn't have the time to regroup like men do in five sets. So five sets please.