French Open champion Li Na played like a 'junior' while Vera Zvonareva, Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova were all also sent packing after rusty performances in the third round at the Toronto Cup on Thursday.
Novak Djokovic posted black screenshots on his Twitter and Instagram pages with the message "Black Lives Matter", and was joined by Federer and Nadal, the other members of the "Big Three" of men's tennis.
Maria Sharapova began Act II of her storied career on Monday when she shrieked her way into the second round of the French Open with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Anastasiya Yakimova of Belarus.
Defending champion Li Na was shown the door while Maria Sharapova remained on course for a maiden title after the fourth round of the French Open on Monday.
Fourth seed Venus Williams retired from her Australian Open third round match against Germany's Andrea Petkovic with injury on Friday after lasting just seven points.
Top seed Caroline Wozniacki and former champion Maria Sharapova brought glamour and grit to the opening day of the Australian Open with first round victories on the Rod Laver Arena Monday.
Czech Petra Kvitova created a major upset by shocking favourite Maria Sharapova to win her first Grand Slam title with a 6-3, 6-4 win in the women's singles Wimbledon final on Saturday.
Top seed Maria Sharapova's flirtation with the New Zealand public came to a premature end on Thursday with a surprising 6-2, 7-5 loss to unseeded Hungarian Greta Arn in the quarter-finals of the Auckland Classic.
Maria Sharapova underlined her pulling power on Monday with Auckland Classic organisers confirming they had sold out all of the day sessions for the entire tournament just minutes before she stepped on court for her first round match.
Fans turning up for the Wimbledon women's quarter-finals might have been forgiven for feeling a little short-changed by Tuesday's lineup yet the action served up by some of the sport's lesser lights was undoubtedly worth the ticket.
Factbox on Japan's Naomi Osaka, who beat Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 to win the US Open title on Saturday.
Djokovic is clubbed with Federer, Juan Martin Del Potro, David Goffin and Alexander Zverev.
Former men's champion Mats Wilander believes third seed Muguruza now looks like the most likely champion, having not dropped a set and thrashing Maria Sharapova on Wednesday.
China's Li Na beat last year's champion Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 7-6 in the French Open final on Saturday to become the first player from an Asian nation to win a grand slam singles title.
A little bit of retail therapy is all Maria Sharapova needs to overcome her French Open disappointment before she turns her attention to her beloved grasscourt season.
China's Li Na overcame Maria Sharapova 6-4, 7-5 in Thursday's first semi-final and boosted her bid to become the first Asian to win a Grand Slam singles title, while Francesca Schiavone got the better of Marion Bartoli 6-3, 6-3 in the second semi-final.
Former world number one Maria Sharapova battled back from a torrid start against French teenager Caroline Garcia to book her place in the French Open third round with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory on Thursday.
Former spinner Shane Warne on Monday had announced he would auction his Baggy Green cap to raise funds for victims of devastating bushfires in Australia.
Dinara Safina's French Open preparations suffered a shock setback when she lost 7-6, 7-6 to Czech qualifier Klara Zakopalova in the Madrid Open first round on Monday.
A look at 10 sexiest female players at the French Open.
Maria Sharapova and Samantha Stosur signalled their return to form ahead of Roland Garros after setting up a final showdown at the Italian Open on Saturday.
Former world number one Maria Sharapova sounded out a warning to her rivals on Tuesday after demolishing fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-1, 6-1 in 54 minutes to advance to the third round of the Italian Open.
Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed her first victory over Serena Williams, winning 6-4, 6-4 at the Sony Ericsson Open on Tuesday to set up a semi-final clash with Maria Sharapova.
Garbine Muguruza roared into the French Open semi-finals with a 6-2, 6-1 demolition job of Maria Sharapova on Wednesday.
'Maria will look at it and see no one dominant. Serena Williams is the only player in the past who has been like a thorn in her side, but she feels mentally superior to most of the other and she feels she can win against them all'
Maria Sharapova was dogged by injury and controversy as she tried to get her career back on track.
Women's champion Serena Williams, bidding for her 22nd Grand Slam title, will have to overcome No 4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the first singles semi-final at the Rod Laver Arena.
Factbox on Romanian Simona Halep, who beat Serena Williams 6-2, 6-2 to win the Wimbledon title on Saturday:
Maria Sharapova and Elena Dementieva breezed into the quarter finals of the Stanford Classic on Wednesday, crushing their second-round opponents with equal efficiency.
Kim Clijsters survived three match points before a rain break then produced a remarkable comeback after the weather cleared to beat Maria Sharapova 2-6, 7-6, 6-2 and win the Cincinnati Open on Sunday.
Russian sixth seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova claimed her third title of the year by beating seventh-seeded Australian Daria Gavrilova in the final of the Hong Kong Tennis Open on Sunday.
Jelena Dokic let out a huge yelp of delight after outgunning fifth seed Nadia Petrova 6-4, 7-6 at the Paris Open on Thursday to book a meeting with Kim Clijsters in the last eight.
Images from Day 1 of the Australian Open.
As the world celebrated Halloween on Monday, our favourite tennis stars and footballers didn't want to be left behind in all the celebrations.
Former world number one Maria Sharapova suffered a fourth round shock at the Australian Open on Sunday when she was bundled out 6-2, 6-3 by Germany's Andrea Petkovic on Sunday.
Top seed Maria Sharapova delivered an enigmatic performance but still advanced to the quarter-finals of the Auckland Classic with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Renata Voracova of the Czech Republic on Wednesday.
Looking at the response time, brands are proactively snapping ties with celebrities in the face of controversy.
Should the 30-year-old three-time Rome champion, ranked 211 in the world, reach the semi-finals, she would almost certainly earn an automatic Wimbledon main draw slot ahead of the May 22 rankings cut-off date.
Maria Sharapova has pulled out of Russia's Fed Cup semi-final against Germany in Sochi this weekend with a leg injury, the Russian Tennis Federation said on Tuesday.
The administrator of the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme denied it had sought a four-year ban for the former world number one and, in a statement, rejected suggestions by the Russian that its independent tribunal was "not neutral"
