Williams faces Australian Jarmila Gajdosova on Monday, but Justine Henin is top seed and meets Aiko Nakamura of Japan, aiming for a 29th straight win.

Williams is determined to claim Henin's number one spot this year after shaking off groin, calf and thumb problems.

"I don't feel any pressure at all. I feel just excited to be here," said the American sixth seed.

Men's number two Rafael Nadal plays under the lights when he faces Serbian qualifier Viktor Troicki on Monday.

And last year's beaten finalist Maria Sharapova and Andy Roddick are in action at the Vodafone Arena.

Henin, who won in Melbourne in 2004, controversially walked off centre court midway through the 2006 final against Amelie Mauresmo with a stomach complaint.

Despite here off-court difficulties early last year, though, the Belgian finished 2007 with 10 titles, including the US and French Opens.

"I don't have the feeling I have to prove anything to anyone," said Henin, who won in Sydney this week.

Roger Federer opens his campaign on Tuesday, seeking a third straight title in Melbourne, although has been unable to play any warm-up events because of a stomach virus.

In the bottom half of the draw, Nadal is seeded to meet Roddick in the quarter-finals.

The Spaniard insists he is fully fit - despite suffering a shock 6-0 6-1 thrashing at the hands of Mikhail Youzhny in the Chennai Open final last weekend.

"Physically, there is no problem, so I am very happy about that," said the left-hander, who needed four hours to beat Carlos Moya in the Chennai semi-finals.

"I am confident. I've practised very well this week.

"I was only tired. It was a terrible semi-final, a four-hour match, and I only had less than 24 hours to recover. I went to sleep late because it finished late. It was tough to recover."

(BBC)

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