Evert expects the best of Serena

Serena Williams had a successful 2016 by most people's standards, winning Wimbledon to match Steffi Graf's 22 career Grand Slam titles, finishing second in Australia and France and getting engaged to marry Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.

But the women's tennis season concluded with many wondering whether Williams, at 35, ever would be her dominant self again, having lost the No. 1 ranking to Angelique Kerber after losing in the U.S. Open semifinals to Karolina Pliskova and battling injuries.

We will know soon enough, as the Australian Open begins Monday in summery Melbourne.

What might we expect? ESPN analyst Chris Evert expects her best.

“This is a woman with pride and ego and used to being No. 1, used to being the queen at the top,” Evert said on a conference call with reporters to promote the tournament.

“I'm sure that that's going to be motivation for her, not liking to see another name up there . . . I don't think it's a matter of if she's going to win another Grand Slam, I think it's when, and I think it will happen this year.”

Evert was asked what effect Williams' engagement might have on her.

“That remains to be seen,” said Evert, whose romantic life was a frequent source of attention and intrigue during and after her playing days. “You can't predict when somebody gets engaged.

”It can go one of two ways. It can be a very pleasant distraction. You can lose your focus a little bit at the task at hand. Or it can be so inspiring, you feel so good, that you're more settled. You really are in a really good place emotionally, and your tennis can improve.

“We've seen it both ways in tennis players. I don't think we can predict that. In saying that, you know, the one good thing coming into the year, Serena seems to be healthy. She was fighting all kinds of things. If it wasn't one thing, it was another. The shoulder. If it wasn't the shoulder, it was something else.”