Comeback kid Justine Henin happy with her progress but it's Serena's title

"I CAN definitely say it: I'll be back next year." Justine Henin had just lost the Australian Open final 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 to Serena Williams, but in only the second tournament since she came out of retirement at the start of the month, Belgium's mighty atom had proved that she was still a force to be reckoned with. And now that she is back, she intends to stay.

After a couple of years in the doldrums, women's tennis is finally beginning look interesting again. While Henin was away, working with UNICEF and trying to discover what life in the real world was like, the women's tour was left in tatters. It had players who could gather enough ranking points to be ranked No.1 but they could not win grand slam titles – Dinara Safina and Jelena Jankovic – and it even had a player who could win a slam and become No.1 (Ana Ivanovic), but the pressure of success flattened her.

Williams, meanwhile, made hay while Henin and her countrywoman, Kim Clijsters, sat at home with their feet up, but she did not have a great deal of opposition as she collected the major trophies. All that has now changed. Clijsters is back in business and is the US Open champion and now Henin is back in the Australian Open final.

"Of course I'm disappointed," Henin said after the loss. "When you lose in the final of a Grand Slam, especially in three sets, and I got a few opportunities that I haven't been able to take. But this feeling of disappointment cannot take away from all the things I've done in the last few weeks. And it's just more than what I could expect. I just have to remember that."

Williams will remember that, too. After she took the first set and had exchanged breaks of serve in the second, it looked as if she would be too powerful for her old rival: Henin was playing well in patches, but she could not produce a consistent challenge. But then, as the champion homed in on what seemed to be a straight sets win, Henin went for broke. That backhand that ripped everyone to shreds in her previous life started to find its mark and, moving Williams around, she broke for a 4-3 lead and, in a run of 10 consecutive points, she claimed the second set.

Had it not been for Williams's serve – she racked up 12 aces in all – Henin might have stood a better chance. Henin manufactured 16 break points but when she found herself with her back to the wall, Williams was able to wallop another ace and dig her way out of trouble.

Back in 2006, Henin incurred the wrath of the Australian crowd by pulling out of her final with Amelie Mauresmo. She was being outplayed and overpowered and then, suddenly, with no warning, she threw in the towel. The Aussies call it bailing – and they do not like it.

But the Australians do love their sport and as they watched Henin battle and struggle her way through the rounds this year, they warmed to her. When the umpire robbed her of a chance to break the Williams serve – overruling a call and making her replay the point, which she then lost – the crowd began to rally behind Henin.

"They gave me an unbelievable support," she said. "And it was for me very important to realise that they like the fact that I'm back. And Australian fans and people are so nice, and they know about tennis. They wanted me to win. They gave me everything they could. I think it was fantastic support. It was the best place to start again."

For Williams, the match was a warning. She generously claimed that Henin could finish the year as the world No.1 if she kept her comeback going at this pace, but she glossed over the fact that she will have to work hard to repel the challenge of both Henin and Clijsters.

Both women have returned to the tour with a different outlook and now that tennis is not the only thing in their lives, they are both stronger for it. A player who has no fear of defeat and takes winning as an added bonus can simply concentrate on the business of hitting the ball. That is freedom that few players on the tour know.

Yet if Williams has her work cut out, the spectators are in for an enjoyable year. Henin brings the best out of Williams. Both are fighters and both refuse to be beaten. Both in their pomp are an impressive sight.

"She's a real champion," Henin said. "She plays the right shot at the right time. We had great battles in the past. We played our best tennis when we played each other. At the beginning it was quite difficult for me to face Serena. Then slowly but surely I could change it a little more."

Now that she is back, Henin is changing it again and the rest of locker room had better take note. The younger players had their moment to shine when Henin and Clijsters retired. Now that they are back, they, along with the Williams sisters, look like forming a closed shop on the grand slam circuit.