Russia, last year's runners-up, were unable to call on world number six Maria Sharapova who was injured
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.
Petra Kvitova takes on Naomi Osaka in Saturday's Australian Open final with one of them set to emerge as a fresh champion at Melbourne Park.
'She's always smiling. I mean, we try in our team to smile everywhere. We make so many funny stuff around the court. She likes it'
Osaka remains on course for glory at Melbourne Park after blowing away Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-1 to set up a last four clash with Czech Karolina Pliskova in the year's first Grand Slam.
PHOTOS from day two of the Wimbledon championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London on Tuesday.
Simona Halep was able to shake off the disappointment of a third consecutive early exit from the WTA Finals by focusing on a positive year that led to the 26-year-old old Romanian climbing to the top of the world rankings.
Images from Day 2 of the 2020 US Open in New York
'Physically, tactically, emotionally, three out of five separates the great players from the good players'
Williams had little trouble against the 31-year-old German although the gusty breezes at Auckland Tennis Centre played havoc with her ball toss, especially when she was serving for the match at 5-3 in the second set.
Images from Day 7 of the 2021 Wimbledon at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, in London, on Monday.
Simona Halep's powers of recovery will be put to the test on day eight of the Australian Open on Monday when the world number one meets Japan's Naomi Osaka in a tricky fourth round clash.
Millman, ranked 80 places above world number 14 Pouille, needed 73 minutes to clinch a 6-3, 6-4 victory and the best win of his career by ranking position.
He leads the men's seedings ahead of defending champ Roger Federer, with Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov seeded third.
Germany's Angelique Kerber, who will try to prevent Serena Williams winning an eighth Wimbledon title on Saturday, never went away but she too is making a comeback of sorts.
Netherlands' dream run in the Fed Cup ended agonisingly short of the final when they lost the deciding doubles rubber of a thrilling semi-final against France in Trelaze.
Karolina Pliskova lost her cool over a line call and bashed a hole into the umpire's chair with her racket after suffering a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 defeat by Maria Sakkari in the Italian Open second round on Wednesday.
Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova raced to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australian Daria Gavrilova to defend her Kremlin Cup title in Moscow on Saturday and secure a place at the season-ending WTA Finals.
Japan's Naomi Osaka claimed her first career title with a commanding 6-3, 6-2 victory over Russian Daria Kasatkina in a battle of 20-year-olds at the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Images from Day 7 of the 2021 French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on Saturday.
American tennis ace Venus Williams has entered the top ten of latest WTA ranking following her victory in the Zhuhai Masters in China.
The top seed was forced to dig deep into her vast reservoirs of experience to stave off Pliskova's challenge and emerge a 7-5, 7-6(6) winner against the gutsy Czech.
Overpowers Svitolina to reach second straight US Open final
Images from Day 2 of the French Open matches played at Roland Garros on Monday
One year after shaking off a crippling foot injury to claim a stunning US Open victory, Sloane Stephens said her follow-up season felt just as good as the American prepares to play in next week's WTA Finals for the first time.
The 27-year-old Romanian beat Sloane Stephens at Roland Garros to win her maiden Grand Slam title in June and will have spent 40 weeks at the top of the rankings by the end of the season.
India's Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis stormed into the final of the women's doubles after a straight-sets victory against Germany's Julia Georges and Karolina Pliskova, at the Australian Open in Melbourne, on Wednesday.
Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki battled back after a mid-match slump to beat Angelique Kerber of Germany on Friday and book a place in the semi-finals of the Pan Pacific Open.
Images from Day 3 of the 2020 US Open in New York, on Wednesday.
Coric, who had failed to win a match in his last two appearances in Beijing and Shenzhen, saved two break points at 3-3 in the second set and clinched the first four games of the decider to record his 32nd match win of the season.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
The Australian Open will lose one of its giant killers when South Korean Chung Hyeon meets American Tennys Sandgren in an unlikely quarter-final showdown at the Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday.
There was not an ounce of bitterness as Osaka accepted the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup from Asia's first Grand Slam champion Li Na
The top seed proved too good for Croatian baseliner Karolina Sprem in the Family Circle Cup.
Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova warmed up for Wimbledon with her first grasscourt title, beating in-form Czech Karolina Pliskova 7-5 6-3 at the Aegon International in Eastbourne on Saturday. But the former Australian Open finalist, seeded 12th, had to work hard for the victory early on. She had her serve broken in the first game of the match, setting the pattern for an entertaining tussle as the players traded breaks with abandon.
Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova stunned top seed Agniezka Radwanska and then trounced Monica Puig to reach the Aegon International at Eastbourne on Friday.
Leading the field at the US $175,000 event will be former World No. 1 Martina Hingis and India's teenage sensation Sania Mirza.
The US-based Indian went down to Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the third round of the qualifiers.
Images from the Australian Open in Melbourne on Thursday.
