Serena Williams can still see room for improvement in her game despite racking up her 17th successive win at the Australian Open today.

Maria Sharapova may have dropped just two games in cruising into the third round of the Australian Open, but the Russian today denied that indicated a lack of depth in the women’s game.

US Open champion Samantha Stosur's struggles on home soil continued today as she made a stunning first-round exit from the Australian Open.

The seedings for this month’s Australian Open have been released, with Novak Djokovic and Caroline Wozniacki receiving top billing.

Samantha Stosur’s Australian Open preparations hit another hurdle today as the US Open champion was beaten in straight sets by Francesca Schiavone in the first round of the Sydney International.

SOME were nude, others were almost nude but they all made a splash yesterday as the latest “Body Issue” of ESPN Magazine showed some of America’s top athletes in all their power and glory.

World number four Andy Murray survived a scare to reach the final of the Thailand Open in Bangkok today.

Second seed Vera Zvonareva survived another battle at the US Open today to reach the fourth round at Flushing Meadows.

FOR the second day in succession, an Irish tennis player was forced to retire from a US Open first round match as Louk Sorensen succumbed to injury against Rogerio Dutra Da Silva while losing 0-6 6-3 4-6 0-1 at the time.

Petra Kvitova became the first reigning Wimbledon champion to lose in the first round of the US Open in the Open era last night.

World number one Novak Djokovic will meet number four Andy Murray in the final of the Western & Southern Open.

Two-time defending champion Kim Clijsters has withdrawn from the US Open after failing to recover from a stomach muscle injury.

Serena Williams' hopes of claiming a third consecutive title in the build-up to the US Open were shattered when she was forced to withdraw from the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati with a toe injury.

Serena Williams will resume her title defence in the more grand surroundings of Court One today after the All England Club acquiesced to the champion’s plea to move away from the outer reaches of Wimbledon.

ANDY RODDICK acknowledged an “outstanding” performance by Feliciano Lopez after losing a match in straight sets at Wimbledon for only the fifth time in his career.

Tsvetana Pironkova took revenge for her defeat to Vera Zvonareva in last year’s semi-finals as she knocked out the second seed in the third round at Wimbledon today.

RAFAEL NADAL made a winning debut under the Centre Court roof as he booked his place in the third round of Wimbledon with a 6-3 6-2 6-4 win over Ryan Sweeting.

Last year’s Wimbledon runner-up Vera Zvonareva survived a first-round scare to defeat promising young American Alison Riske 6-0 3-6 6-3 this afternoon.

Kim Clijsters was today forced to withdraw from Wimbledon following tests on a foot injury.

Victoria Azarenka continued to avoid the clatter of seeds in the women’s draw at the French Open as she eased through to the quarter-finals with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Ekaterina Makarova this afternoon.

Andy Murray is set to test out his injured ankle in the fourth round of the French Open today knowing this time there will be no helping hand from his opponent.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC is expecting a battle when he takes on 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro in the pick of the third-round matches at the French Open today.

Third seed Vera Zvonareva came back from match-point down to defeat ailing German Sabine Lisicki 4-6 7-5 7-5 in the second round of the French Open this evening.

A potentially memorable final showdown between clay court king Rafael Nadal and in-form world number two Novak Djokovic at the Madrid Open moved a step closer last night as both players progressed through to the quarter-finals without any problems.

World number one Rafael Nadal was one of a host of seeds to progress into the third round of the Madrid Open today, with a mouth-watering showdown against Juan Martin Del Potro awaiting the Spaniard tomorrow.

Vera Zvonareva and Svetlana Kuznetsova today moved Russia to the brink of the Fed Cup final with victories in their semi-final singles rubbers against two-time defending champions Italy in Moscow.

Maria Sharapova reached her first final of the year in impressive style as she powered back from dropping the first set to beat Andrea Petkovic at the Sony Ericsson Open.

Kim Clijsters admitted she ran out of "fighting spirit" as she lost to Victoria Azarenka in the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

Defending champion Kim Clijsters admitted she did not have it all her own way as the moved into the fourth round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

Roger Federer won his first match in this year’s BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

Vera Zvonareva upset world number one Caroline Wozniacki to win the Qatar Ladies Open in Doha today.

Li Na became the first Chinese player to reach a grand slam singles final after saving a match point on her way to beating Caroline Wozniacki at the Australian Open.

Kim Clijsters produced a masterclass to see off Vera Zvonareva and advance into the Australian Open final today.

Kim Clijsters is confident of producing the improved performance she feels is required to beat Vera Zvonareva in the Australian Open semi-finals tomorrow.

RAFAEL NADAL fired out a warning to his Australian Open rivals by beating Marin Cilic and then declaring himself back to full fitness.

Kim Clijsters completed the quarter-final line-up at the Australian Open although she was made to struggle by Ekaterina Makarova.

Vera Zvonareva remained on course for a third successive grand slam final appearance after moving into the last eight of the Australian Open today with victory over Iveta Benesova.

Vera Zvonareva believes the experience she gained from last year’s grand slam final appearances came to the fore as she squeezed past Lucie Safarova at the Australian Open today.

Second seed Vera Zvonareva survived a major scare at the Australian Open today before edging out teenager Bojana Jovanovski.

World number one Caroline Wozniacki has suffered a setback ahead of next week’s Australian Open, crashing out in the second round of the Sydney International in straight sets at the hands of Dominika Cibulkova.

Top seed Caroline Wozniacki was in ruthless mood as she beat Elena Dementieva in her first match at the WTA Championships in Doha.

Kim Clijsters successfully defended her US Open title with a one-sided victory over Russia’s Vera Zvonareva in a disappointing final at Flushing Meadows.

Defending champion Kim Clijsters will face Vera Zvonareva in today's US Open final after coming from behind to beat Venus Williams in their semi-final.