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Editor's note: It seems every year is a good one for tennis fans. With so many stars and so many matches, you're left with indelible memories aplenty. Beginning Dec. 13, Ravi Ubha is unveiling the top 100 moments of the 2010 season. Check back each weekday until Dec. 24 as we count down to No. 1.

Samantha Stosur proved her semifinal appearance at 2009's French Open was no fluke.

Stosur beat three former or current No. 1s in a row at Roland Garros on the way to the final, aided by a devastating kick serve and big forehand.

Knocking off Justine Henin -- the tournament winner in her three previous visits -- was one thing. But the Aussie topped that by then saving a match point against Serena Williams.

Unfortunately for her, Stosur's game went missing in the finale.

We knew Williams' foot injury after Wimbledon was serious. She was forced to withdraw from the U.S. Open.

But it took the 13-time Grand Slam winner an age -- well, two months -- to disclose what had happened. It all seemed so mysterious.

She finally revealed she had cut her foot on broken glass as she left a restaurant in Munich.

Trying to come back in the fall, Williams made things worse and pulled out of next month's Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal couldn't defend his Wimbledon title in 2009 due to those worrisome knees. He barely missed a beat on his return.

After overcoming early scares facing Dutchman Robin Haase and German Philipp Petzschner, Rafa got better, dropping one set from the fourth round onward.

Hello to title No. 2.

Gael Monfils and French Open drama go hand in hand.

Monfils and Italian Fabio Fognini played until 9:55 p.m. local time in Paris in the second round, the latest finish in tournament history.

At 4-4 in the fifth set, Fognini wanted out, understandably saying he couldn't see the ball. Monfils, egged on by the remaining French fans in the stands, wanted to continue.

Fognini kicked up a fuss and earned a point penalty but eventually held for 5-4. Monfils, his leg ailing, subsequently saved three match points for 5-5.

They had to finish it off the next day, and Fognini prevailed.

"In my 30 years of tennis -- watching qualifiers, Grand Slams, whatever -- I've never seen a match played in that kind of darkness," ESPN analyst Darren Cahill said.

The U.S. Open can mean only one thing -- another Roger Federer special between the legs.

Federer pulled off a beauty against Novak Djokovic in the semifinals in 2009, and Argentine Brian Dabul was on the receiving end in this year's first round.

Federer, countering a lob, smacked a cross-court tweener for a clean winner.

"I turned around and couldn't believe the shot landed in the corner," Federer said.

Not so great for the 16-time Grand Slam champion was his stay at Wimbledon, the venue of many of his greatest triumphs.

His Grand Slam semifinal streak having ended at the French Open weeks earlier, Federer fell in the quarterfinals at the All England Club to awakening Czech Tomas Berdych.

Fed was in a slump.

Remarkably, it was the first time since 2002 Federer failed to reach the Wimbledon final.

It wasn't as dramatic as Williams' episode in 2009, but there was more foot-fault madness at the U.S. Open.

Andy Roddick, never one to shy away from confronting officials, became incensed when a lineswoman -- not the same one -- mistakenly told him his right foot was the offender on a foot fault in a second-round defeat to Janko Tipsarevic. She actually got the call correct.

Roddick chirped away at the lineswoman, content to drag things on for a few minutes.

"I wasn't upset with the call," Roddick said. "I just expect my umpires to know their left foot from the right. In hindsight, did I let it go too far? Probably."

One of the scariest moments of the season unfolded at Flushing Meadows, too.

Victoria Azarenka collapsed when trailing Gisela Dulko 5-1 in the second round. Initially, heat exhaustion was thought to be the reason -- on-court temperatures exceeded 105 degrees that day and heat got to the shrieking baseliner at the 2009 Australian Open.

Later, though, we found out Azarenka had sustained a mild concussion when she fell off a treadmill before the match.

Troubled by injury and burdened by personal issues, Nadal unexpectedly lost in the fourth round of the 2009 French Open. Oh, Robin Soderling was also in inspired form.

Nadal, arguably the greatest clay-court player of all time, made things right. He captured a fifth French Open title in 2010 by easing past Soderling, flashing unbelievable defense -- even for him -- in the opening set.

Nadal didn't lose a set throughout the fortnight.

"Maybe this is the tournament I most wanted to win," Nadal said.

Those tournaments in the fall can be pretty boring -- there's little to play for and the big fish sometimes stay away.

Semifinal Saturday at the Paris Masters, however, turned out to be one of the best days of the campaign.

Nearly six hours of tennis were on show, and all but one of six sets went to a tiebreaker. Two charismatic Frenchmen were involved. The losers held match points. Federer had five against Monfils, while Michael Llodra squandered one -- a sitter of a forehand -- versus Soderling.

Outstanding.