In the second part of our Australian Open preview, we look at the fortunes of the favourites for the women's crown in the run-up to Melbourne.

In the absence of world number one Justine Henin-Hardenne, Maria Sharapova is the top seed in Melbourne. She played the Watsons Water Challenge exhibition tournament in Hong Kong as her warm-up tournament, beating compatriot Elena Dementieva. She was beaten 6-3 7-6 in the final by Kim Clijsters and seems decidingly lacking in match practice heading into the first Grand Slam of the year, and one in which she is expected to live up to her billing as the top seed.

Sharapova opens against Camille Pin in round one. Pin is ranked 61 (which is a career-high ranking for her) and reached the semis in Auckland before retiring against Jelena Jankovic. Anastasia Rodionova or qualifier Renata Voracova await in round two.

In her half of the draw are Auckland finalist Vera Zvonareva, Ana Ivanovic, Hobart champion Anna Chakvetadze, Sydney champion Kim Clijsters, Gold Coast champion Dinara Safina and Martina Hingis.

Kim Clijsters has had the perfect start to her 2007 season, winning the Watsons Water Challenge in Hong Kong and following that up with the title in Sydney the following week. She beat rising star Jelena Jankovic 4-6 7-6 6-4 to make her the form player of the season so far. Going into Melbourne, the Belgian has yet to lose a match.

Clijsters faces off against Hobart finalist Vasilisa Bardina in her Melbourne first round. Bardina is currently ranked 70 but will be brimming in confidence after reaching her first WTA final as a qualifier.

Clijsters is in the same section as top seed Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters and Martina Hingis.

Amelie Mauresmo

The defending champion in Melbourne was beaten in round two in Sydney by Jelena Jankovic, so her preparations for her title defense did not go as smoothly as planned.

Her opening round sees her take on Shenay Perry, who is ranked 45, and has only won one match so far this year. She lost to Camille Pin in Auckland and then was beaten by Laura Granville in the qualifying event for Sydney. Ether Olga Poutchkova or Marta Domachowska lies in wait for Mauresmo in round two.

Svetlana Kuznetsova

The Russian withdrew from her match against Katerina Srebotnik in Sydney after experiencing breathing problems due to an infection of the respiratory tract, so her Melbourne preparations were dealt a severe blow.

Kuznetsova faces wildcard Jessica Moore in her opening match, followed by another wildcard - either Monique Adamczak or Iroda Tulyaganova. Moore is ranked 992 and will likely find the going too tough against the number four seed. She was given a qualifying wildcard for Hobart but lost in the first qualifying round to Alona Bondarenko in straight sets.

Her half includes Amelie Mauresmo and Jelena Jankovic.

Nadia Petrova

The Russian had a great start to the season, partnering compatriot Dmitry Tursunov to the Hopman Cup title. The next week she was forced to retire from her match against Ana Ivanovic after sustaining an abdominal injury. Like Kuznetsova, Petrova is unsure of her form heading into the first Grand Slam of 2007.

She takes on Tamarine Tanasugarn in the first round in Melbourne, followed by a clash with either Gisela Dulko or TianTian Sun. Tanasugarn is ranked 71 and has yet to play a match in 2007.

Her half of the draw includes Auckland champion Jelena Jankovic, Serena Williams and number two seed Amelie Mauresmo.

The Russian has had a nightmare start to 2007. She was beat Nicole Vaidisova but in the Watsons Water Challenge was then beaten by compatriot Maria Sharapova, and then was ousted by Li Na in the opening round in Sydney, meaning she has played only a handful of matches in the run-up to Melbourne.

Her first round match is against Stephanie Foretz, followed by either qualifier Joanna Cravero or Martina Mueller. Foretz is ranked 111 and qualified for Hobart, where she lost in the first round to Jie Zheng in straight sets.

Dementieva's half includes Amelie Mauresmo, Jelena Jankovic and Serena Williams.

Martina Hingis reached the final on the Gold Coast but lost 6-3 3-6 7-5 to Dinara Safina. She was ousted in the first round in Sydney by the in-form Jelena Jankovic, leaving her short of match practice in the week before Melbourne.

Hingis plays Nathalie Dechy in the first round in Melbourne. Dechy is ranked 49 and lost in the first qualifying round in Sydney to Jill Craybas. Either Emma Laine or qualifier Alla Kudryavtseva will provide the round two opposition.

Her half of the draw includes Kim Clijsters and Maria Sharapova, as well as rising stars Ana Ivanovic, Li Na, Dinara Safina and Anna Chakvetadze.

Nicole Vaidisova

Nicole Vaidisova started her year at the Watsons Water Challenger in Hong Kong, where she was stunned by Zi Yan after beating Nicole Vaidisova in three sets.

She regained some momentum in Sydney the following week but was beaten in the semis by Jelena Jankovic.

Her first round clash is against Jill Craybas, with either Jarmila Gajdosova or Milagros Sequera awaiting in round two. Craybas is ranked 58 and reached the semis in Auckland before losing to runner-up Vera Zvonareva. She then lost in the final qualifying round in Sydney to Vera Dushevina.

Vaidisova's half includes Jelena Jankovic, Serena Williams, Amelie Mauresmo and Nadia Petrova.

Jelena Jankovic

Her run to the semis of the US Open in 2006 was a surprise to many, but just a few months later Jelena Jankovic is on the verge of cracking the top 10 and enters the Australian Open as one of the most in-form players of the 2007 season so far.

As the top seed in Auckland, she beat Vera Zvonareva 7-6 5-7 6-3 to start off the year with a title. She followed that up by beating Martina Hingis 6-4 4-6 6-3 in the opening round in Sydney, and then beat top seed Amelie Mauresmo 7-5 6-0 in the second round. A win over Nicole Vaidisova in the semis set up a final against Kim Clijsters, with the latter winning a thrilling three-set final 4-6 7-6 6-4. Despite the loss, Jankovic is probably the second most in-form player behind Clijsters - having lost just the one match going into Melbourne.

Jankovic faces Aleksandra Wozniak in round one, and then a match against either Melinda Czink or Virginia Ruano Pascual. Wozniak is ranked 92 and has played one match this year, losing in the opening qualifying round in Sydney to Kaia Kanepi.

Jankovic's half of the draw includes Amelie Mauresmo, Nadia Petrova and Serena Williams.