Serena ready to challenge Mauresmo, Myskina in Linz tourney

LINZ, Austria -- Former world No. 1 Serena Williams will challenge Amelie Mauresmo and Anastasia Myskina for the title at the $585,000 Generali Ladies tennis tournament in Linz, the U.S. star said Sunday.

"I have come here to win," Williams said on her arrival at Linz airport for the tournament, which begins Monday.

Williams, 23, called herself a "crossover celebrity, including being an actress, a fashion designer, a model and an athlete."

She is aiming for her 26th WTA title in the Austrian town and hoping to add to her 2004 victories in Miami, Florida, and Beijing.

Williams is seeded third behind Mauresmo and Myskina.

While Myskina had long signed on for Linz, world No. 2 Mauresmo only faxed her application one minute from the deadline.

"I decided Linz was a good option to catch up on Lindsay," said Mauresmo, who was given a wild card to try and close the gap of 152 points to world No. 1 Lindsay Davenport of the United States.

The Russian duo Vera Zvonareva and Nadia Petrova follow Mauresmo, Myskina and Williams in the seedings, while defending champion Ai Sugiyama of Japan is seeded sixth.