It hardly seems fair. We’re all sitting on our hands expectantly, waiting for the guys tomorrow in what should be, if it lives up to the hype, one of the greatest men’s matches ever. But it’s sad to have to report that, other than the final tomorrow, this has been a rather lackluster Roland Garros. The women’s final today just concluded, and sadly proved the point.

Justine Henin-Hardenne was a heavy favorite going into this match against Svetlana Kuznetsova, who had only beaten JHH once in nine tries. Right there was probably the heart of the problem. A record that lopsided means someone owns you and your game, so you are probably a head case already from the get-go.

Kuznetsova showed us this history from the opening point. She spent nearly all of the first set just getting her head in order. The nerves were obviously getting to her. She ran up five errors alone in the opening game. The predictable thing happened: Henin-Hardenne took advantage of that and got herself an early break. By the time the Russian Number Eight seed got herself calmed down, it was too late. The first set was gone, 6-4.

This is a morose turn of events, since I have gone out on the limb to pick the Kuz in three sets over JHH. I don’t feel any better when John McEnroe in the commentary booth pipes up with, “One of the things about watching the women is how unpredictable it is.” Duh. That’s a mild statement for what women’s tennis has become in the last year and a half or so. The big titles are now spread rather evenly around a number of people in the women’s fields. Meaning: Not the glow of diversity, but rather that the play is very uneven and nobody can really step up and take charge. Personally I think it is not a good thing when there is this much chaos taking place. And that is the word to use. Things feel like they are falling apart.

Justine Henin-Hardenne may be the one to step up and assert herself, the way she did today. And even today she would probably concede that she was lucky. We all got on her case after her retirement from the Australian Open this January. I seem to recall that I was particularly incensed with her behavior towards Amelie Mauresmo, whom I thought would go on to have a stellar year.

Well guess what, folks. Amelie is back in the slough of despond, Clijsters went out to JHH in a really surprisingly lame semi-final match, Petrova gave out a big choke and disappeared on opening day, Venus Williams got us worked up and then dropped us just as abruptly. And everyone seems now like they are getting bored not only with Sharapova’s personality, but her game too.

Hingis can still entertain, but only up to a point. She’s going to have to start beating up the really top girls if she wants to sustain our interest. My co-writer, Nina Rota, thinks the fact Hingis came back and made a dent in the lower echelons means the women have not improved much. And sometimes I wonder about the top echelon, given the quality of a lot of the play we saw today.

Which leads me to bemoan the fact that I am getting a bit skeptical of Martina and her Great Return. I DO expect her to beat the bigger girls now, isn’t that why she’s here? Instead it is not proving that way, and I wonder if Martina can make the reality check and then the appropriate adjustment in her game.

I look at Justine Henin-Hardenne, and I wonder why Hingis can’t use her as a model. They are nearly exactly the same size, Hingis may be an inch taller. Why can’t Hingis bring her game up closer to where JHH’s is? If Justine can add more pop to her serve and her forehand, can’t Hingis? I think she has, a little bit. We still have further to go, but can she go there? Does she want to be the grunt that Justine is reportedly in her training intensity? I wonder. And I hope. There seems little point in planning a comeback unless you feel you can really hang with the big girls now. Hingis can demolish nearly the entire field, but the top girls are still going to be problematic for her. Unless she addresses these issues.

And this is the problem with the women. The desire is not there in a lot of them, or they would be doing the things they need to do, making the corrections, trying to keep improving. If you want it, do it. Justine steps up to the plate and unloads one. And she’s just a little squeak.

There is no denying JHH has the most beautiful and interesting game now on the women’s side. I can’t keep hating her guts forever. She is just too talented. And she works like a dog, something I really admire about the woman. Her trainer speaks of having to get her to back down and not train so hard. How many women can we say that about on the tour? Her work ethic is beyond impeccable and her sense of discipline is really extraordinary. Alright, so she’s a cool type, and her husband is almost a bit too fey, and they probably have one of the stranger marriages the tour has seen. The woman can play.

Does anyone else think that Henin-Hardenne though almost looks a little TOO lean right now? A year ago I was saying just the opposite: “My God, what is she taking that her body looks so much bigger?” Yes, I wondered what secret potions she was drinking in amongst all that time spent in the weight room. But now she looks thinner than before. I wondered if her growing fatigue today was due to the fact she may be too thin for longer matches. But I guess if you are always facing women who get nervous and discombobulated and play just downright lousy, then you will continue to get by them. Thin or not. And what does that say about women’s tennis? Why can’t we have more women like her? Maybe we’d see a more interesting final than the one we saw today.

Really, it should have been Kuznetsova who was consistently taking it to Justine. She is the stronger woman, with the bigger shots. But she just could not control her game today. At the end of the first set and into the second, Kuzie grabbed the momentum. Her nerves calmed down, she started imposing her game on Henin-Hardenne. She had a run of six straight points, and for a moment I thought for sure she would turn it around in three sets.

But then she slipped back into her play of the early first set. Overhitting shots and basically letting her mind slip away. And Justine plainly looked rather winded, as if a little more pressure would have done her in for good. But Kuznetsova could no longer trouble her. Justine just kept on going and never looked back. She leveled a great backhand up the line for championship point, then served a weak second serve that Kuznetsova obliged by hitting wildly off to the side.

And these broads want equal pay? Pull my other leg, baby. Justine deserves it, but not many after her. With this victory hopefully she can establish who’s boss now among the women. The tournament also yielded glimpses into two future stars, Shahar Peer of Israel, and Nicole Vaidisova of Czechoslovakia. Both showed lots of power and energy on the court. OK, so the Czech got tight at the last minute, but everything else about her experience at Roland Garros should convince her that she will be around for a while.

But right now, the future of the men and the women are in the hands of people who are not exactly physical specimens. Roger Federer is not a big guy and he doesn’t serve huge. But he plays smart, and so does Justine Henin-Hardenne. Their games are beautiful to watch and very similar. Johnny Mc got that one right today in the booth.

Now, when are the other boys and girls going to improve THEIR games? And don’t all speak at once.

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