Two more young stars to strengthen Italy's grip on the women's tennis circuit

Italy have always had their fair share of women tennis players over the past 20 years.  Now they are looking to bring through a host of new emerging stars on to the WTA tour - a new batch of clay court babes

Since I started watching tennis I have seen Rafaella Reggi, Sandra Cecchini and Silvia Farina all gain Top 20 positions, and more recently Francesca Schiavone has been the Italian No. 1. But is there one player who could break into the world’s Top 10?

Flavia Pennetta has been dangerous on the clay courts this season and is moving in the right direction, but the real rising stars in Italian tennis are youngsters Sara Errani and Karin Knapp, who first emerged on to the WTA tour last year.

Sara Errani is a diminutive player at only 5ft 4ins. She has made great advances up the rankings from number 171 at the end of 2006 and is now within a whisker of the top 50. She turned 21 last year and I think has a bright future ahead of her, especially on her preferred surface, the European clay courts.

In her breakthrough year in 2007, Errani reached two semi-finals in Acapulco, Mexico, and Bali, and even took Lindsey Davenport to three gruelling sets in the Australian Open earlier this year, showing her liking for the big occasion.

She is a powerful ground stroke player who will develop as she plays in bigger tournaments. The youngster has victories over Domicka Cibulkova, Sybil Bammer, Maria Kirilenko and Annabel Medina-Garrigues on her CV. She could be the next big thing for the Italian tennis fans to rave about, but her colleague, Karin Knapp, also wants a share of the limelight.

Knapp is one year younger than Errani and has already moved into the world’s top 50 this season with a string of brilliant performances.  She reached her first tour final in Antwerp, defeating several top players including Li-Na, Natalie Dechy and Patty Schyder before falling to Justine Henin on the final.

She has also had career wins over Alona Bondarenko, Agnieska Radwanska and Victoria Azarenka and has improved her ranking to number 40. Knapp has a definite chance of a top 20 spot in the future and can play well on all surfaces. Knapp is a natural talent and is probably the best hope from this emerging nation.

Italy now have seven top 100 players and there are many more youngsters moving up the rankings to join their team-mates.

The most notable youngster other than Knapp and Errani is 18-year-old Corinna Dentoni. The youngster will look to make an impact on the main WTA tour this year and move up the rankings to challenge the increasingly competitive Italian tennis stars of the future.