Italian Roberta Vinci crushed the world number one's hope of completing a calendar grand slam by reaching the women's singles US Open final for the first time in her career.
World No 1 Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams have been named as top seeds for the US Open, which will commence from August 29.
List of leading women's grand slam singles title winners in the professional era after Serena Williams surpassed Steffi Graf by winning the Australian Open on Saturday.
The 24-year-old, who has yet to win a Grand Slam title, was in stunning form as he defeated Russian Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-1 to become the first German man to win a singles Olympic gold.
The women's singles is wide open, Arantxa said, but picked Halep as favourite.
Bollywood superstar Salman Khan launched ace tennis player Sania Mirza's autobiography 'Ace against Odds' at a function in Mumbai on Sunday. Sania, who will partner Prarthana Thombare from Maharashtra at the prestigious Olympics Games in Rio heaped praise on the latter, describing her as a very good tennis player. "I and Prarthana (Thombare) is the first pair, who has won a medal. In Asian Games we have won a women's doubles medal. But besides that, she is a young girl, and she is a good prospect for us.
Challengers to Serena Williams' throne have proved as fickle as a Paris spring and as the year's second grand slam starts the veteran American is again seemingly in a league of her own. The 34-year-old's charge to overhaul Margaret Court's record 24 grand slam singles titles may have stalled since she chalked up major number 21 at last year's Wimbledon. But after fine-tuning her claycourt game by winning last week's Italian Open she will begin the defence of her French Open title as the strong favourite. With twice French Open champion Maria Sharapova suspended pending the findings of an anti-doping hearing after she tested positive for Meldonium in Australia this year, the list of players capable of toppling a fully firing Williams is short.
World number one Serena Williams survived a mid-match meltdown to beat Czech Lucie Safarova 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-2 to win the French Open on Saturday, her 20th Grand Slam singles trophy.
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.
Rediff.com takes a look at players who tested positive for use of banned substances over the years.
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