World number five Roger Federer delivered a tennis masterclass to beat rising star Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-3 and clinch a record ninth Halle Open title on Sunday as he lay down a marker in the lead-up to Wimbledon.
Juan Martin del Potro continued his encouraging buildup to the Australian Open by reaching the semi-finals of the Sydney International on Thursday, but women's contender Petra Kvitova was stunned by a Bulgarian qualifier in the last four.
Swiss second seed Stan Wawrinka advanced into the semi-finals at the Rogers Cup with a comprehensive 6-1, 6-3 victory over big-serving South African Kevin Anderson at the Aviva Centre in Toronto on Friday.
Images from Day 5 of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Friday.
Under the lights on the stadium court, Williams smashed 39 winners to defeat Azarenka 7-5, 6-3 in a rematch of the 2016 final, which the Belarusian won.
Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro served notice of his strong form ahead of the Australian Open when he crushed defending champion Bernard Tomic 6-3, 6-1 in the final of the Sydney International on Saturday.
Richard Gasquet kept his ATP World Tour finals hopes alive when he overcame Fernando Verdasco 7-5, 6-7(6), 6-3 to reach the Paris Masters third round as fellow Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga crashed out of the race on Tuesday.
Check out some of the up-and-comers who could cause an upset at Wimbledon this year.
Top seed Novak Djokovic launched his Shanghai Open title defence in fine style, breezing past Spain's Marcel Granollers 6-2, 6-0 on Wednesday. Later Roger Federer, playing his first singles match since a fourth-round exit at the US Open, made a brisk return to winning ways, beating Andreas Seppi 6-4, 6-3.
All the results from the matches played in the BNP Paribas Paris Masters on Tuesday
Defending champion Andy Murray ground his way past Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin with a 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 victory on Tuesday to reach the quarter-finals of the US Open where he will face Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka.
The Big Four were always going to come into the year's first Grand Slam knowing fully well that their days of dominance are drawing to a close, if not already a thing of the past, says Dhruv Munjal.
Novak Djokovic brushed past France's Adrian Mannarino 6-4 6-3 7-6(5) on Wednesday to book his place in the third round of Wimbledon. The defending champion, aiming for his third consecutive title, played well within himself and was rarely troubled during the second-round match. Mannarino, ranked 55, put up spirited resistance in the third set to force a tiebreak but was ultimately swept off Centre Court by the Serbian's laser-guided ground-strokes.
Roger Federer subdued Tomas Berdych 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the final to win the Dubai Championship on Saturday, the Swiss maestro's 78th singles title.
Coach Boris Becker can help Novak Djokovic acquire a greater mental toughness to better his recent record in Grand Slam finals, the Serb said ahead of the Dubai Championships which begin on Monday.
Angelique Kerber, who will reclaim the world number one ranking on Monday, breezed to a 6-2, 6-1 second-round victory over fellow German Andrea Petkovic at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday.
The Argentine, making his first appearance at Wimbledon since reaching the semi-finals in 2013, held aloft his arms in triumph after condemning twice Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka to his earliest defeat at the All England Club for three years.
World number five Juan Martin del Potro began his 2014 season with a win, albeit a scrappy one over Frenchman Nicolas Mahut to advance to the quarter-finals of the Sydney International on Wednesday.
Novak Djokovic had to fight back from a set down to beat Thomaz Bellucci and reach the Italian Open quarter-finals.
As Real Madrid star striker Cristiano Ronaldo watched, the World No 4 Nadal went past Italian Bolelli to set up a quarter-final clash against 10th seed Grigor Dimitrov.
Earlier on Wednesday, Czech Karolina Pliskova was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to a viral illness.
There is no let-up for Roger Federer as he prepares for his 12th consecutive appearance at the ATP's season-ending extravaganza.
Former world number one Roger Federer looked like his old self when he beat Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 at the Paris Masters on Friday to set up a semi-final clash with Novak Djokovic. Top seed Rafa Nadal destroyed local favourite Richard Gasquet 6-4, 6-1 as he stepped up his bid for a record sixth Masters Series crown in the same season.
India ended its campaign at the Fed Cup with a fourth place finish after losing the classification tie 1-2 to Korea as the team badly missed injured Karman Kaur Thandi, who did not play on Saturday, in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Third seed Stan Wawrinka was sent packing in the round of 16 at the BNP Paribas Open in California on Wednesday and was very nearly joined by Rafael Nadal, who pulled off a Houdini-like escape to reach the last eight.
Serbia carved out a 2-0 lead over rivals Croatia while Britain led the US by the same score and holders Switzerland were tied with Belgium in the Davis Cup.
Fernando Verdasco sent shockwaves through the Australian Open on Tuesday by defeating Rafael Nadal 7-6(6), 4-6, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 to send the former world number one crashing out in the opening round.
It was a routine win for top seed Novak Djokovic, but his satisfaction at reaching the Wimbledon quarter-finals without dropping a set was mixed with relief after some tricky moments against German veteran Tommy Haas on Monday.
Rediff.com brings you the second instalment of the Best Sports Photos of the Year!
For 15 minutes Novak Djokovic appeared to have a fight on his hands at the ATP World Tour Finals on Wednesday, then the Serb dialled up his A game and tore Stanislas Wawrinka to pieces.
Roger Federer's hopes of knocking Novak Djokovic off the top of the ATP world rankings before the end of the year took a hit when he lost to big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic in the Paris Masters quarter-finals on Friday.
Rafael Nadal's announcement on Friday that he will miss the ATP World Tour Finals because of appendicitis ended a difficult year for the Spaniard during which he has endured injury, illness and worrying defeats.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer notched up contrasting victories to reach the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals on Thursday while David Ferrer fought back from a set down to knock out Andy Murray.
Seven years after their first Grand Slam final meeting, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer stand on the verge of a third showdown at the highest level.
It's an acid test against the Czech Republic in the World Group Play-off tie, but Rohan Bopanna is confident India's Davis Cup team can tame the world number one three-time champions.
Welspun India Ltd bought British towel manufacturer Christy in 2006. And since then they have been manufacturing all the towels for the tournament at their facility in Vapi, Gujarat.
Defending champion Serena Williams is the top seed in the women's draw. The American will be looking to equal Steffi Graf's Open era record by sealing a 22nd Grand Slam triumph.
Fans spent more time looking at the murky Parisian sky than watching tennis on Tuesday as French Open organisers were accused of "not caring about the players" after the event was disrupted by more rain following the previous day's washout.
Rafael Nadal is recovering satisfactorily from appendicitis and will continue a course of antibiotics in a bid to be fit for the remainder of the 2014 season, the World No 2's spokesman said on Thursday.
Roger Federer rolled back the years to beat Novak Djokovic 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the semi-finals of the Dubai Championship on Friday, his first victory in four meetings with the world number two.
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