MELBOURNE, Australia - She spent 26 weeks at No.1 last year - more than anyone on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour - yet at the first Grand Slam event of the year, no one has been moving through the draw as quietly as world No.2 Dinara Safina. And on Friday she cruised into the second week.
Safina, whose 16-match win streak last spring propelled her to the No.1 spot, had a somewhat subpar second half of the year, albeit not subpar enough to keep her from finishing 2009 as the No.2 player in the world.
She later revealed she had been strugging with a back injury during that second half, and in her first tournament Safina lost in the Sydney quarterfinals, 62 63, to eventual champion Elena Dementieva. But she has started the Australian Open strong - beating her first three opponents comfortably in straight sets.
"It was a very solid match from my side," said Safina, who hit 19 winners to 14 errors in a 61 62, 57-minute third round win over Elena Baltacha. "It was nice to win quickly. Last year I played long matches in the heat - I like this better."
Check out Dinara's off-season blog right here!
While the media pays most attention to the Williams sisters and the Belgians - and, in the Australian media's case, the likes of Sam, Casey and the Aussies - Safina has been somewhat lost in the mix, despite being the second favorite on paper. Even in her down time, all is calm.
"Yesterday I did nothing. I practiced early then I came back to the hotel. I ate somewhere close to the hotel and then I just hung out in the room, watching movies. The only thing I did yesterday was go to the bookstore and buy the Julie & Julia cookbook. That was the only thing that made me walk out of the room.
"I like cooking. Instead of library books, I have cookbooks. I want to cook. I'm just starting. Until now nobody has gotten sick, so that's a positive. They may not like it, but at least they don't have problems with the stomach.
"I can make not bad risotto with asparagus, and green salad with olive oil."
And when she went to the bookstore, was there any fanfare?
"Sometimes people recognize me, but yesterday nobody did, so I don't know. Actually, some girl did come up to me and said 'Good luck.' But overall not many people. Or maybe they're scared to come," Safina joked.
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