Henin tops the Wimbledon bill

Justine Henin, the world number one who has never won Wimbledon, and Serena Williams who is looking to match her sister Venus’ three of All England Club crowns, are set to lead the parade of Championship contenders in the second round today.

And the odds are that they will collide in the quarter-finals, with the powerful American looking for revenge after her devastating defeat at the French Open last month by the technically-superb little Belgian.

Henin, 25, insists that if she goes through her career without lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish – to add to the collection of Australian, US Open and French successes – it will not be the end of world.

She claimed: “It is still a dream for me to win it but not an obsession. The important thing is that I am now as happy in life as I’ve ever been. And in a few years time I know I will have a new life after tennis.”

Henin, divorced in January from her husband of four years, Pierre-Yves Hardenne, missed the Australian Open and then suffered a bad bout of asthma.

But she bounced back to lift her third Roland Garros crown and then retained her Eastbourne International title last week by beating her 2006 Wimbledon conqueror Amelie Mauresmo in an exhausting three-set final.

There was little evidence of wear and tear as she summarily dismissed Argentinian qualifier Jorgelina Cravero in Wimbledon’s first round on Monday and she should comfortably dispose of Russian youngster Vera Dushevina to reach the last 32.

It may be tougher for Serena. She floored Spain’s Lourdes Domingues-Lino 6-0 in the second to take her first step to that quarter-final match-up with Henin but first has to see off Australia’s former top 10 star Alicia Molik.

You should never write off the big Californian, who seemed to have been treating the sport as just a hobby for a spell before her shock win, from a world-ranking of 81, in the Australian final against Maria Sharapova.

But the rumours persist that she is struggling with a hamstring injury and her lack of big matches could make that a major factor in the end.

She is certain to have the galvanising support of sister Venus who beat Miami-based Russian Alla Kudryavtseva despite being a set and a break down in a match of hotly-disputed calls.

Venus clawed her way back, inspired by a 119mph serve, to claim a 2-6 6-3 7-5 win which, at the end, left her rival in tears.

Defending champion Mauresmo, who has failed to win the title in her native France in 13 attempts, thrashed American Jamea James, 20, in two sets despite being a break point down on her opening serve.

Mauresmo admitted: “This year is a little bit different because really I did not feel that well at the French Open. So it definitely makes it better here for me.”

Former champion Sharapova had to dig deep in the end to beat determined Yung-Jan Chan of Taipei on 6-1 7-5 and at times looked sluggish after a recent shoulder injury.