Martina Hingis bowed out of Wimbledon with a 7-5 3-6 6-4 defeat by Ai Sugiyama admitting she needs to rediscover her clinical touch if her comeback is to progress.

BELGIAN pair Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne continued their march into the last 16 but there will be no fairytale final for former Wimbledon champion Martina Hingis.

Mary Pierce needed seven match points before finally beating Ai Sugiyama of Japan 6-0 6-3 to win her first US outdoor hardcourt title at the Acura Classic in California.

Serena Williams shrugged off doubts about her fitness to cruise into the second round of the US Open with a 6-1 6-3 victory over Sandra Kleinova of the Czech Republic.

Russian teenage sensation Maria Sharapova became the darling of the Centre Court as she blazed her way into the Wimbledon semi-finals.

Kim Clijsters and Venus Williams highlighted just how wide the gap is between the leading women and the also-rans today with emphatic victories in the third round of the Australian Open.

Martina Navratilova insists she does not know yet whether she will try to break Billie-Jean King’s record of 20 Wimbledon titles next year.

Second seed Kim Clijsters became the quickest player in 21 years to reach 50 wins in a season as she strolled into the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the second time today.

Kim Clijsters, who set off at a gallop in the first round, showed little sign of a let-up as she cantered through to the last 16 with a straight sets win over Samantha Reeves.

Venus Williams left Court Philippe Chatrier to a sprinkling of boos as Vera Zvonareva ended one of the most historic runs in world tennis tonight and set up an all-Russian quarter final.

Nine-times Grand Slam champion Monica Seles remains on course for a first-ever Wimbledon crown but was taken all the way by unseeded Ai Sugiyama in a fiercely-contested third-round tie.