ROME - World number one Serena Williams swept Belarusian Victoria Azarenka aside 6-1, 6-3 to win the Rome Open title on Sunday. Williams broke Azarenka's serve three times in a one-sided first set and despite a tighter second set the American prevailed to stretch her career-best winning streak to ...

  ROME   World number one Serena Williams said she hoped to improve her game for the French Open after easing into the Rome Open final with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Simona Halep which ended the qualifier’s dream week in the Italian capital. Williams, the 15-times Grand Slam winner, ...

ROME - Defending champion Rafael Nadal endured a three-set thriller before overcoming big-hitting Latvian qualifier Ernests Gulbis 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the Rome Masters quarter-finals. Gulbis, ranked 46th, and a winner inRomein 2010 over Roger Federer on his way to the semi-finals, ...

  ROME     Briton Laura Robson beat Venus Williams 6-3, 6-2 in blustery conditions at the ATP/WTA Rome Masters on Monday and now faces the second half of a one-two punch when she next plays Williams’ sister and world number one, Serena. The top-seeded American, who was watching ...

MADRID - Serena Williams retained her Madrid Open title on Sunday with a devastating display to beat world number two Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-4.The title is Williams' 50th of her singles career and extends her amazing run over Sharapova whom she hasn't lost to in 12 meetings since 2004. And Williams ...

MADRID - The world's two top female players, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, will battle it out for the number one ranking when they meet in the Madrid Open final on Sunday after both came through Saturday's semi-finals in straight sets.Current number one Williams sealed her place in the final ...

MADRID - Rafael Nadal overcame a stiff test from compatriot David Ferrer to reach the Madrid Masters semi-finals Friday while Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova stayed on course for a mouth-watering title showdown.World number five Nadal pulled off a roller-coaster 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-0 win over ...

  MADRID   Roger Federer made a winning return after a two-month absence from the court as he cruised to a 6-3, 6-3 win over Radek Stepanek to move into the third round of the Madrid Open on Tuesday. A solitary break in the fourth game was enough for the Swiss world No.2 to take the ...

    MADRID:- World No 1 Serena Williams was given a reasonable test in her first match at the Madrid Masters on Sunday against Kazakh qualifier Yulia Putintseva before the American eventually prevailed 7-6 (7/5), 6-1. Putintseva had come through two rounds of qualifying and she seemed to ...

CHARLESTON  - Serena Williams crushed her older sibling Venus 6-1, 6-2 to reach the final of the Family Circle Cup in the most lop-sided match of their WTA Tour careers between the American sisters.In the first match between them in four years, Serena needed just 54 minutes to send Venus ...

MIAMI- Serena Williams got her quest for a record sixth Miami WTA title off to a brisk start on Thursday with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Italian Flavia Pennetta.The world No. 1 and top seed, playing her first tournament since falling to Victoria Azarenka in the final at Doha in February, said she ...

  DUBAI- Serena Williams may be the oldest player ever to become world number one on the WTA rankings but she is still young enough to match the Grand Slam achievements of two legends, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. That is the 31-year-old's ambition, says her coach Patrick Mouratoglou, ...

MELBOURNE  - Serena Williams went down smashing rackets and screaming as she bowed out of the Australian Open quarter-finals on Wednesday, hampered by a back injury and beaten in three sets by fellow American Sloane Stephens.The injury robbed Williams of her serve - the most effective weapon ...

MELBOURNE - Serena Williams survived a busted lip and Roger Federer and Andy Murray raced into round three on a day of ice-packs and sunscreen as temperatures soared at the Australian Open on Thursday.Defending champion Victoria Azarenka toyed with the fourth "double bagel" of the women's draw as ...

MELBOURNE  - Serena Williams' bid for a historic Grand Slam hit an injury hurdle at the Australian Open Tuesday, as Roger Federer and Andy Murray coasted and a landmark for Chinese tennis proved short-lived. Federer and Murray opened their accounts with superlative wins on a sun-drenched Rod ...

MELBOURNE  - World number one Victoria Azarenka and 15-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams were Friday pitted in the same half of the women's singles draw for next week's Australian Open.Azarenka, who broke through for her first major title in beating Maria Sharapova in last year's ...

BRISBANE  - Serena Williams confirmed her eagerness to get started at the Australian Open as she demolished Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-1 in just 50 minutes to win the Brisbane International on Saturday.Third-seeded Williams served notice that she will be the one to beat at ...

BRISBANE - Serena Williams survived a testing examination from fellow American Sloane Stephens at the Brisbane International on Thursday to book a semi-final against world number one Victoria Azarenka.Williams was pushed all the way by her Fed Cup teammate in the last of the four quarter-finals ...

BRISBANE - Serena Williams stamped her authority on the Brisbane International on Tuesday when she crushed Frenchwoman Alize Cornet 6-2, 6-2. On a day that saw second seed Maria Sharapova withdraw with an injured collarbone and fifth and sixth seeds Sara Errani and Petra Kvitova bundled out, ...

BRISBANE  - An angry and impatient Serena Williams overcame blustery conditions at the Brisbane International on Sunday in an ominous beginning to her only tournament before her charge at a 16th major title at the Australian Open next month.The American threw her hands in the air, shook her ...

PARIS - Serena Williams has been named WTA Tour Player of the Year for the fourth time after winning Wimbledon, the US Open and Olympic gold in a stunning summer of success. The American started the year poorly amid concerns over her fitness and motivation and lost in the fourth round of the ...

ISTANBUL  - Serena Williams completed her sensational 2012 comeback by easing to a 6-4, 6-3 win over Maria Sharapova for a third WTA Championships title on Sunday. The 31-year-old's victory came at the end of a spectacular year in which she also collected the Wimbledon, Olympic and US Open ...

ISTANBUL - World number one Victoria Azarenka remains in suspense as to whether she will capture the year-end top spot after losing to Serena Williams for the fifth time in five meetings this year on Thursday.The Belarusian's 6-4, 6-4 loss to the American in the WTA Championships means she may have ...

ISTANBUL  - Serena Williams may silence some of her remaining critics if she caps a tremendous comeback year by regaining the title at the WTA Championships which start at the Sinan Erdem arena on Tuesday.Having won Wimbledon and the US Open, and an Olympic singles gold medal for the first ...

STANFORD - Serena Williams, who seized her 14th Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon on Saturday, was preparing for a change of scene this week with her hard-court WTA title defence at Stanford.Organizers said top-seeded Williams would launch her Stanford campaign on Wednesday, giving her a bit of ...

LONDON - Serena Williams was crowned Wimbledon champion for the fifth time on Saturday as the American subdued a brave fightback from Polish third seed Agnieszka Radwanska to win 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 in a dramatic final.Serena, who pockets a cheque for £1.15 milllion ($1.78 million), is the first ...

LONDON - Serena Williams reached the 100 aces mark at Wimbledon on Saturday, making her the biggest server of aces in both the men’s and women’s tournaments this year.The American reached the landmark in the fourth game of the third set of the final against Agnieszka Radwanska when she ...

LONDON  - Serena Williams and Agnieszka Radwanksa will meet in Saturday’s Wimbledon final in a battle of raw power against slender poise and expectation over hope.Four-time champion Williams, the 30-year-old sixth seed, buried Victoria Azarenka under a record firestorm of 24 aces to ...

LONDON  - Four-time champion Serena Williams clinched a marathon triumph over China's Zheng Jie to reach the Wimbledon last 16 on Saturday as Lukas Rosol, the conqueror of Rafael Nadal, returned to anonymity.Sixth-seed Williams, playing in her 13th Wimbledon, saw off 25th-seed Zheng, 6-7 ...

CHARLESTON  - Fifth seeded Serena Williams captured her 40th career WTA title by overpowering ninth seeded Czech Lucie Safarova 6-0, 6-1 at the Charleston claycourt tournament on Sunday.The 13-time Grand Slam winner needed just 58 minutes to dispatch Safarova in her first final appearance ...