The Premier-level tournament in Rome is warming up, with the strong field of seven of the Top 10 players present, including world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki, but let’s remind ourselves of the dormant long-time champions Serena and Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters. What are they doing?

Serena Williams has slipped from No.10 to No.17 in the rankings released today and there is still no word on when she will come back from her two foot surgeries and the blood clot in her lungs. Serena's fall in the rankings is actually historical for American tennis history, as this week is the first week ever that the United States have no representative in the Top 10 in either WTA or ATP lists.

Soon it will be a year that Serena has been away from tennis courts. However, the younger Williams sister is far from bored. Recently she even had a stalker drama in her life. Read more »

I always love it how Maria Sharapova's Grand Slam dresses have a special story and inspiration behind them and for the 2011 French Open the Nike team came up with a collection revolving around Paris and its Eiffel Tower. My all-time favorites still remain the 2007 US Open dresses and their New York skyline. Read more »

Marine of Tennis Notebook has become a regular contributor to Women's Tennis Blog. Now she's making French Open predictions. Do you agree with her?

As we are nearing Roland Garros, tennis enthusiasts are starting to make first predictions about who has got what it takes to win the title. What is interesting about this debate is that there is some hesitation about who to pick as a favorite. The reason is quite simple: No.1 player in the world has won all kinds of tournaments … apart from a Grand Slam.

When Kim Clijsters became a No.1 in 2003, "a No.1 player without a slam" was a new phenomenon in WTA. Her accomplishment was a beginning of the debate which starts off regularly when someone happens to be (un)lucky enough to make it to the top spot "slamless".

The debate opened again with JJ achieving that, and has become pretty intense during the time when Dinara Safina became No.1. We all know what pressure of expectations and constant criticism did with Safina and even though things changed with the arrival of more self-assured Caroline Wozniacki, many people still frown at the No.1 without a Grand Slam crown.

The question "who is the best player in WTA" has become somewhat difficult to answer and therefore it nowadays produces mixed answers, although people tend to select the same couple of names.

So, who is the best player nowadays and who is the most likely to win Roland Garros 2011?

Here are my picks:

1. Caroline Wozniacki– Her performance has shown that she is a No.1 for a reason. Wozniacki goes far or all the way in most of the events she enters and even in Grand Slams rarely leaves before quarterfinals. Read more »

As suggested by our loyal reader, Gregoire, I have written a transcript of my recent interview with one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Chris Evert, who believes that the upcoming French Open has all the right circumstances for world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki to win her first Grand Slam.

Question: Last year the United States Tennis Association started the US Open National Playoffs to allow anyone 14 or older a chance to earn a spot in the US Open singles qualifying tournaments. How much of an advantage do you think it is in tennis to be from a country that gives you an opportunity to earn such a wildcard?

Chris Evert: This is what we’re focusing on tennis in America in this one instance, the USTA is trying to open up into the inclusive of all tennis players. If you are a good college player, and you’ve always had that dream of playing in the US Open, but you never could, you never qualified, now it’s an opportunity to get into a tournament, a playoff, that if you play well and you qualify, you get a wildcard into the main draw. So, the beauty of it is that there are 16 tournament playoffs throughout the country and everybody has a chance, you just have to be over 14 years old. That’s why I’m playing in it, because Mike Greenberg , who is with ESPN’s "Mike and Mike", said it was always a dream of his to play the US Open, and he was a college player, and he asked me "Would you play with me, would you be my partner?", I said "Sure, let’s go and have some fun", and at the same time give it a little publicity, for the USTA, so that’s why I’m doing it.

Question: How likely is Caroline Wozniacki to win her first Grand Slam at the French Open this year?

Chris Evert: I think it’s her best chance to win any Grand Slam so far, because every other Grand Slam you’ve had Serena or Venus on the fast courts, and you’ve had Kim Clijsters, who has been really playing well and won a couple of Grand Slams [note that Clijsters is unlikely to play Roland Garros this year, because of an injury sustained at a wedding]. This French Open I think Caroline will be favorite to win, probably her first Grand Slam ever. The heat is on, everybody’s talking about the fact that ok you’re great, you’re consistent, you hit the ball well, but you’re world number one and you’ve never won a Grand Slam. So, I’m sure she’s feeling the heat and the pressure. This is a great opportunity for her, because you’ve got a couple of injured top players and I don't think Kim Clijsters, I think she’s maybe not quite as patient on the clay, so I think this is her tournament, if she really wants it, if she can really stay healthy and not play too much until then.

Question: What do you think her potential victory will depend on?

Christ Evert: I think she’s played a lot of tennis so far. She’s played the Australian Open, and she’s played some other tournaments leading up to Indian Wells and Sony Ericsson, she won Charleston… She’s got to be fresh. She’s in shape, so I would say stay fresh mentally, just to focus for those two weeks, because she will be the favorite and she’s just got to stay focused. That’s the key. She’s already a tremendous athlete. Stay focused and fresh. (Wozniacki photo: © Neal Trousdale)

Once again in time for Roland Garros I had the opportunity to talk to tennis legend, winner of 18 Grand Slam singles titles and record seven French Opens, Chris Evert. Actually, I didn't really talk to her, because there was some confusion in the organization concerning time zones, and we failed to catch up, but fortunately, my questions did reach her.

I was excited to hear that Evert favors Caroline Wozniacki to win the upcoming French Open, in absence of Serena Williams (whom she favored last year) and Kim Clijsters. She thinks that Wozniacki is now in the perfect position to win a Grand Slam – both in terms of her form and with regard to the circumstances.

Evert also talked about the 2011 US Open National Playoffs and the opportunity young American players have. Enjoy the interview!