Juan Martin del Potro suffered the first real upset and Victoria Azarenka had a big scare, but Serena Williams and Andy Murray eased through challenging ties to reach the last 16 of the Australian Open on Saturday.
Venus Williams targets return for Indian Wells and Miami
A year that began with doubts over Rafael Nadal's body and continued with worries over Roger Federer's head ended with both men at the peak of their powers and promising some juicy new chapters of their rivalry in 2011.
Serena Williams, with 21 grand slam titles in her trophy cabinet, thinks she has nothing left to prove to anyone and just wants to have fun for the remainder of her career.
When Dinara Safina replaced Serena Williams at the top of the women's world rankings in April, the Russian said she had achieved a childhood dream.
Serena Williams' career has been so astonishing that it could fuel umpteen movies
Serena Williams survived another scare to beat older sister Venus 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday in the latest instalment of their reluctant on-court sibling rivalry to reach the quarter-finals of the inaugural Top Seed Open in Lexington, Kentucky.
Some players and pundits have criticised the rule as being hard to police, spottily enforced and highly subjective, and called for the ban on coaching from the players' box to be lifted.
World No 1 Serena Williams inflicted swift revenge on behalf of her older sister when she beat Britain's Laura Robson 6-2, 6-2 in the Rome Masters on Tuesday.
Holder Maria Sharapova ended the encouraging run of Venus Williams to reach the semi-finals of the Italian Open on Friday, but Serena Williams enjoyed an easy passage through to the last four.
Andy Murray is not sure whether to bow or not but Serena Williams is taking no chances -- she is busy practicing her curtsy.
Melbourne Park's first glimpses of Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal were brief on Tuesday but Serena and Venus Williams both gave full value at the Australian Open with their first round wins.
The former champions lit up the courts with their amazing tennis after a wet start to the fifth day at the Australian Open.
With her post-pregnancy comeback, the tennis champ is shattering stereotypes and inspiring women everywhere.
Maria Sharapova and world No 1 Serena Williams haven't played each other at the Wimbledon Championships since their Round of 16 clash in 2010.
Germany's experienced Angelique Kerber stands in the way of the 36-year-old American and an eighth, and arguably most impressive, All England Club singles crown which would see her match Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam titles.
Serena Williams plans to play fewer tournaments in the future to aid her quest to win more Grand Slam titles, according to her coach Patrick Mouratoglou.
The veteran American set up a showdown with Romanian former world number one Simona Halep in Saturday's final.
Serena Williams sets up an all-American semi-final against teenager Madison Keys.
Naomi Osaka continued her stunning run of form with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over 23-times Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the first round of the Miami Open on Wednesday, the latest big win for the 20-year-old Japanese player.
An Australian Open electrified by the revivals of seasoned champions will bathe in the warm glow of nostalgia on Saturday when the Williams sisters contest the women's final at Rod Laver Arena.
Round-robin formats at tennis tournaments can cause confusion but Serena Williams has an easy solution, just keep winning.
Hopes that Serena Williams would end a 13-year boycott of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells were dashed on Friday when the World No 1 said she would not be competing in the event "after careful consideration".
A win by Venus would keep the 35-year-old on track for a first grand slam title since 2008 Wimbledon and a possible return to the US Open final where she first made the final in her debut in 1997. But a victory would end little sister Serena's quest for the rarest of tennis feats -- a calendar-year grand slam.
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