I can say two things for certain as the 2011 Australian Open gets underway. Serena Williams will not threepeat as its women's singles champion and the Williams sisters will not repeat as the Australian Open women's doubles champs.
That's because Little Sis is still sidelined with a foot injury that has been slow to heal and will be watching Big Sis from the stands as the action gets underway Down Under at Melbourne Park.
She cut her foot on some broken glass while leaving a Munich restaurant July 7 and the foot required surgery. She missed the 2010 US Open as a result and is now out of the Australian Open as well.
Venus is still there to represent the Williams family tennis dynasty and keep the Australian Open singles title in the family
But it won't be easy for number five world ranked Big Sis. She's seeded fourth in this tournament and has current world number one ranked Caroline Wozniacki, Li Na, Maria Sharapova and Justine Henin on her side of the draw just for starters.
However, this is the one Grand Slam tournament that Venus hasn't won in her career, and the only time she was an Australian Open finalist she lost to Little Sis in 2003. She made it to the quarterfinals before bowing out last year.
So it will be interesting to see what Big Sis does in this 2011 edition of the Australian Open, and I'm hoping that Little Sis will eventually show up, play some tennis and regain her Number One ranking..