Australian Open 2007 thus far...

I found this in The Age (23/1/07):

TENNIS not only takes its players to all parts of the world and keeps their bank balances bulging. It also teaches them things they missed learning because they were on the practice court instead of in the classroom. After Serena Williams disposed of Jelena Jankovic, for instance, she had an English lesson in her press conference.

Q: There was a lot of carnage today in the bottom part of the draw. Have you looked at it, and how does that make you feel about your chances in the rest of the tournament?

A: I like that word, carnage. I take it it means upsets …

Q: Well, it usually means something worse than that, people dying …

A: Oh my, I'm going to look that one up. I've never heard that word. Yeah, a lot of people died today.

Later, Serena was asked whether she'd heard a group of birds chirping from up high in Rod Laver Arena during her match. She had, but wasn't too worried for them, or concerned they might have distracted her. Remember, this is a girl who likes carnage. "My dog chases birds," Serena said. "She hunts them."

Things did look brighter for Serena on the non-vocabulary side of things later as she managed to grind out a 3-set win over Shahar Peer to enter the semis. All said and done, props to her for making it this far while being obviously overweight and not in prime condition! She also demonstrated that she's a fast learner in the post-match interview:

"I am the ultimate competitor," said the former No. 1 player, who came in unseeded after playing only four matches last year due to injury and briefly dropping out of the top 100.

"Definitely ready to create some more carnage," she added with a smile. "I feel absolutely no pressure. I don't think anyone thought I would get this far, except for me and my mom."

Yup, that's just the sort of entertainment only a Williams can provide.

In the top half of the women's draw, it looks like a Sharapova-Clijsters semi showdown is on the cards. Just hope Maria makes it all the way! *crosses fingers*

Another tantalising match will be the men's semis where a new-and-improved Roddick plays some bloke... what's his name? Federal? FedEx? Yeah, he's certainly been express so far by not dropping a set. But if Roddick's annihilation of Fish and Jimbo's tutoring are any indicators of A-Rod's form , this could be the first time Roger misses the finals of a grand slam in a very very loonnnnnggggg time. *prays for a slugfest in 5 sets*

Hospital opens at 4:23 AM