Thursday 14 January 2016 15:41, UK
Defending champion Serena Williams insists she is fighting fit in her bid for a seventh Australian Open crown despite an injury scare and lack of match practice.
The world No 1 has barely played since the US Open in September, when Roberta Vinci shattered her dream of a calendar-year Grand Slam in the semi-finals.
Williams attempted a comeback at this month's Hopman Cup in Perth but retired with soreness in her left knee.
But the 21-time Grand Slam champion, who also battled knee problems in the latter half of 2015, insists she is "ready to go" at the Melbourne Park tournament starting Monday.
"My body is feeling great now," she said this week. "Obviously I had a hiccup but right now it is doing much better. I've had a few days of training so it's looking good."
"I know what I need to do on and off the court to win big tournaments."
Williams is not the only player struggling ahead of the opening Grand Slam of the season, with injuries taking their toll on many of the leading names.
Despite the new season being barely underway, the women's top five have all had troubled lead-ups to their first major test of 2016.
World No 2 Simona Halep (Achilles), Garbine Muguruza (foot), Agnieszka Radwanska (leg) and Maria Sharapova (forearm) have all been battling niggling problems that forced them out of warm-up tournaments.
The world numbers six and seven, Petra Kvitova and Angelique Kerber, joined them in the sick bay suffering gastrointestinal illness, leaving the Melbourne showpiece unpredictable.
