Monday action at the Australian Open completed the quarterfinal line-up and a special treat was to see Svetlana Kuznetsova doing well again. The matches of Day 8 saw Serena Williams wasting little energy to crush Maria Kirilenko 6-2 6-0, Sloane Stephens reaching her first Grand Slam quarterfinal with a 6-1 3-6 7-5 win over Bojana Jovanovski (Stephens will now crack the Top 20!) and top seed Victoria Azarenka easing past Elena Vesnina 6-1 6-1, but Azarenka's next opponent is the one I wanted to focus this article on – two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, who is making a comeback statement with the fourth-round upset of tenth seed and former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki 6-2 2-6 7-5.

Kuznetsova used to be a huge threat, but it's been a while since her name was in the headlines shoulder-to-shoulder with the WTA top names. Last season was her first in 11 years that she didn't finish in the Top 50, largely due to the knee injury that forced her to skip all post-Wimbledon events, but the Russian, despite struggling with crutches and blisters on her hands, used the time off to refresh her mind and came back to the Tour lurking as a low-ranked underdog. Read more »

It's time for our traditional Grand Slam fashion overview! Unlike in previous years, we will start by looking at the less known brands that made an impact at the 2013 Australian Open and we'll leave the giants such as Nike and Adidas for the end of the article.

German Mona Barthel followed her Hobart run to the finals with a first-round 7-5 2-6 6-4 defeat to Ksenia Pervak at the Australian Open, but she left in style, wearing a gracious dress from Denise Cronwall's 2013 collection. Cronwall's designs are always feminine and romantic and even though this dress doesn't have the designer's signature lace and flower patterns, the wavy seam brings about the recognizable elegant feel.

Another young star Camila Giorgi also had a brief appearance at Melbourne Park, but as always she engraved her fashion mark with a colorful and cheerful outfit that perfectly complements her age and beauty.

Venus Williams is slowly spreading her line and is not the only one wearing her clothes on the tennis courts any more. World No.166, former No.25, Jarmila Gajdosova switched from Lacoste to EleVen and proudly sported the peach and white Oh&Oh tank and a matching skirt. Venus herself is working a dress with watercolor print and thin black contrast binding at the bust, waistline, and shoulders.

Compare Australian Open fashion from previous years:

• 2012
• 2011

Two more fashion switches at this Australian Open are Julia Goerges, who came to Fila from Nike, and Svetlana Kuznetsova, who replaced Fila with Qiaodan. Goerges' Fila debut is all blue: the German was wearing separates from spring 2013 Center Court Collection. Notice that her manicure is perfectly blending with the outfit. Kuznetsova was also all blue, but a different shade of blue, wearing the dress of the Chinese manufacturer. Read more »

Fila has been experiencing a major transformation when it comes to the faces representing their women's tennis clothes. Their by far most recognizable WTA faces were multiple Grand Slam champions Kim Clijsters and Svetlana Kuznetsova, and while the former retired last year after the US Open, the latter has switched to Chinese Qiaodan. Read more »

It’s somewhat strange to see a Grand Slam champion in qualifying rounds of a WTA event, but that’s exactly what US Open and Roland Garros winner Svetlana Kuznetsova had to go through to earn her place in the Apia International Sydney main draw. However, getting some additional match play turned out to be beneficial. In the first round, the Russian, who had spent six months recovering from a knee injury, beat Julia Goerges 3-6 6-3 6-3 and followed it up with an upset of former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki. The match against the seventh-seeded Wozniacki was played in sweltering heat and lasted almost four hours, 7-6(4) 1-6 6-2. Here’s how Kuznetsova, who finished last season as early as at Wimbledon, commented on her renewed self:

Before the break I was losing to Goerges, I was losing to Wozniacki, every time I was up and had chances and could never close those matches. Now, after the break, I just feel fresh, I feel happy, I feel balanced on the court. I feel I'm doing the right things when I have to do them.

Read more »

The US Open starts in six days and so far we know that four WTA players will not participate: Flavia Pennetta of Italy, the 2004 US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, Kaia Kanepi of Estonia and Elena Baltacha of Great Britain. The reasons of their withdrawals have not been stated at the official US Open website, but we know that Pennetta is not playing this week's New Haven due to a right wrist injury, Kuznetsova due to a right knee injury, Kanepi is out with a bilateral Achilles injury, while Baltacha is putting a stop to her career in order to undergo a foot surgery. Read more »