BASTAD, Sweden - This time last year she had no Sony Ericsson WTA Tour titles but now has five - and Sweden is, of course, where it all began for Danish sensation Caroline Wozniacki. Set to turn 19 on Saturday, Wozniacki won the Stockholm Open on hardcourts 12 months ago and is back as top seed at the $220,000 Collector Swedish Open Women, which has moved cross country to Bastad and switched surfaces to clay.
Scandinavia's leading light opens against Sweden's current top-ranked player, Sofia Arvidsson, but assuming both players go all the way to the final her rightful opponent would be No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova, who at No.14 is the highest-ranked player yet to capture a singles title on the Tour. The 20-year-old Slovak won her first ever matches on grass at Wimbledon, and having reached her first Grand Slam semifinal at Roland Garros before that, must be considered a real chance this week.
Other serious clay court talent lurks in the field, however, not least in the form of Italy's Flavia Pennetta, who has won five of her six career titles on the surface. The 27-year-old will find no joy in tackling her friend Francesca Schiavone in the first round, though. The 29-year-old arrives straight from her third Grand Slam quarterfinal and first at Wimbledon, and what's more leads their head-to-head 4-0.
Estonia's Kaia Kanepi, another Top 30 player still hunting a title after two runner-up finishes is seeded fourth, but faces a tough opener against Bogotá champion María José Martínez Sánchez. Romanian French Open breakout Sorana Cirstea is the No.5 seed while another up-and-coming teen, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, is seeded sixth. Assuming the Russian gets past US veteran Jill Craybas in the first round she could bump into compatriot Maria Kirilenko in the last 16.
Carla Suárez Navarro, who fell to Jelena Jankovic in the final at Marbella in the spring is seeded seventh and looking to recover her trajectory after dipping out of the Top 30, while seasoned Czech campaigner Iveta Benesova rounds out the seeds at No.8. The left-hander plays tricky young Pole Urszula Radwanska in the first round.
Wildcards have gone to three Swedes: Sandra Roma, who opens against Cibulkova, Johanna Larson, who opens against Cirstea and Ellen Allgurin, who may have an easier task against a qualifier.
