Maria Sharapova swept aside any fears about her fitness with a ruthless 6-0, 6-0 victory over Olga Puchkova on Monday as a trio of top women progressed with ease on the first morning of the Australian Open.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Maria Sharapova continued her untroubled progress at the Qatar Open on Friday, brushing aside Australia's Samantha Stosur 6-2, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
Serena Williams will miss next week's Qatar Open because of the flu, she said on Tuesday, marking the second consecutive tournament the world number one misses due to illness.
Li Na's bid for a second Grand Slam title ended tearfully with an injured ankle, a bruised head and a heart-breaking defeat to Victoria Azarenka, but she could still laugh off her 'stupid' falls after a gallant failure in the Australian Open final.
China's Li Na sent a wayward Maria Sharapova crashing out of the Australian Open semi-finals on Thursday and says there will be no repeat of her capitulation to Kim Clijsters in the 2011 Melbourne Park final.
Wimbledon champions Roger Federer and Serena Williams were on course for further success at the All-England Club after booking their places in the Olympic singles semi-finals on Thursday.
Leander Paes and Sania Mirza entered the quarter-finals of the mixed doubles of the tennis event, beating the Serbian pair of Nenad Zimonjic and Ana Ivanovic in staright sets. The Indian pair won 6-2, 6-4 in only 64 minutes and set up a last eight meeting with top seeds Max Mirnyi and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.
Even though she won four big titles during the year, Serena Williams will still end 2012 ranked No 3 behind Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova. After backing up her victories at Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open with the WTA Championships title on Sunday, Williams concurred with Sharapova and World No 8 Li Na that she is in fact the world's top female tennis player.
Serena Williams has yet to drop a set in the showpiece tournament while Maria Sharapova has only conceded one set.
Thanks to rain, Victoria Azarenka, Venus Williams and 20 other women at the Olympics who have yet to complete a singles match could end up on court six consecutive days if they reach the gold medal round.
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.
Milos Raonic and John Isner were knocked out of the Valencia Open by lower-ranked opponents on Wednesday, denting their chances of clinching one of two remaining berths at next month's World Tour finals in London.
Serena Williams was in no mood to allow a painful tumble to divert her from her path to a sixth Australian Open title on Tuesday and duly delivered a resounding 6-0, 6-0 win to open her campaign at the year's first Grand Slam.
A look at the some of the sexiest female players who will compete at this year's Australian Open.
Factbox on American Serena Williams, who won her 15th Grand Slam singles title at the US Open on Sunday with a 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 win over Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.
Serena Williams, through sheer force of will as much as her skill with the racket, beat World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 in a dramatic US Open final on Sunday to capture her 15th singles Grand Slam title.
All the ingredients are in place for a classic finish to the US Open women's singles tournament with a stellar cast set to take the court on Friday in semi-final action at the year's final Grand Slam.
Djokovic, Rafa Nadal and others who have complained about the blue clay at the Madrid Open are 'weenies', according to former Women's No. 1 Serena Williams.
Maria Sharapova was frustrated by her three-set defeat to World No 1 Victoria Azarenka in Friday's US Open semi-final, but the Russian preferred to look on the bright side.
If there was any doubt that Rafa Nadal will reach the French Open quarter-finals on Monday, a simple look at the numbers should silence the sceptics.
A merciless Maria Sharapova whizzed past unheralded Romanian Alexandra Cadantu 6-0, 6-0 to book her place in the second round of the French Open on Tuesday.
Serena Williams marked her first European appearance of the season with victory on the Madrid Open's striking blue clay courts on Monday, but her sister Venus crashed out in the second round.
India's tennis campaign at the London Olympics met with a disappointing end, as Leander Paes and Sania Mirza were knocked out in the mixed doubles quarter-finals on Saturday. Paes-Sania lost 5-7, 6-7(5) to the top seeded pair of Max Mirnyi and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus. The match was spread over two days after bad light halted play on Friday, with the Belarus pair leading 7-5, 3-2.
The Indian pair of Leander Paes and Sania Mirza were down 5-7, 2-3 in their mixed doubles tennis quarter-final against the Belarusian pair of Max Mirnyi and Victoria Azarenka when play was suspended for the day because of bad light.
Leander Paes and Sania Mirza looked like regular partners on the circuit as they demolished the Serbian pair of Ana Ivanovic and Nenad Zimonjic in the first round of the mixed doubles at the London Olympics, on Thursday and Paes had big praise for his partner after the win.
Images from Day 5 of the US Open in New York on Friday
Veteran Leander Paes was the lone Indian left in the fray at Wimbledon after reaching the mixed doubles quarter-finals on Thursday.
Serena Williams hit top gear in deposing champion Petra Kvitova and ominously for her Wimbledon semi-final opponent Victoria Azarenka the four-times champion says she has nothing to lose in the last-four clash on Thursday.
Leander Paes and his Russian partner Elena Vesnina reached the quarterfinals of the mixed doubles at the Wimbledon with a straight-set victory over Australia's Ashley Fisher and Mona Barthel of Germany on Wednesday.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer each needed three sets to reach the quarter-finals of the Indian Wells ATP tournament on Wednesday while Rafa Nadal advanced with a comfortable victory over Alexandr Dolgopolov.
Fifth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer was ousted from the Indian Wells ATP tournament on Tuesday as Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer both moved into the fourth round.
Twice champion Rafa Nadal and triple winner Roger Federer barely raised a sweat as they each cruised into the third round of the Indian Wells ATP tournament with imperious victories on Sunday.
Serena Williams blew away fellow former number one Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-3 to join top seed Victoria Azarenka in the semi-finals at the Madrid Open on Friday.
Check out the sexiest female tennis players at this year's French Open.
Japan's Kei Nishikori overcame Daniil Medvedev in the Brisbane International final on Sunday for his first ATP title in nearly three years and the 12th of his career.
Former World No 1 Ana Ivanovic brushed aside Caroline Wozniacki to win the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo on Sunday and move closer to sealing a berth for the season-ending WTA finals in Singapore.
Images from day nine of the Australian Open 2012 Grand Slam tennis tournament in Melbourne, on Tuesday.
Rafa Nadal struck a blow for the old establishment, overwhelming Lukas Lacko to become the first man into the Australian Open's last 16 on Friday, before Caroline Wozniacki's reign as world number one survived with a win over Romania's Monica Niculescu.
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