Serena Wins Opener in Melbourne

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Serena Williams shrugged off her knee injury and lack of match practice to beat Italian Camila Giorgi in the first round of the Australian Open.

The American’s troublesome knee forced her to pull out of the Hopman Cup last week and she was pictured taking treatment during a practice session in Melbourne on Saturday.

The world number one had not played a competitive match since her shock US Open exit in September, but she made light of her preparation problems as she edged past Giorgi 6-4, 7-5 in just under two hours.

“It’s great,” Williams said, when asked about her knee injury. “It was an hour and 43 minutes and I didn’t feel it at all.”

Giorgi, ranked 36th in the world, was the highest non-seed Williams could have drawn but she gave away too many easy points, particularly on her serve, which yielded 12 double faults.

Williams was certainly not at her barnstorming best in Rod Laver Arena but, after a long winter break, the top seed believes the extra rest stands her in good stead as she chases a 22nd grand slam title.

“It helped me a lot,” Williams said. “I think I just needed a break. I have been going non-stop since the Olympics in London, and seeing that this is another Olympic year, I kind of wanted to start the year out really fresh and really go at it again as hard as I can.

“I just needed that time to just recover the best of my ability and get really fit, you know, and really train and get ready for the season.”

Taiwain’s Hsieh Su-wei now awaits in round two after she beat Latvian Jelena Ostapenko. The world No90 reached the Australian Open fourth round in 2008.

“She’s really young and really aggressive,” Williams said. “She’s really good, a talented player. She’s extremely young. Very dangerous.”

Sixth seed Petra Kvitova is also safely through to the second round after she cruised past Thailand’s Luksika Kumkhum 6-3, 6-1, but Caroline Wozniacki and Sloane Stephens both crashed out.

Wozniacki, seeded 16th, lost 1-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 to Kazakhstan’s world No76 Yulia Putintseva, while USA’s Stephens was beaten 6-3, 6-3 by Chinese qualifier Qiang Wang.

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Crikey Rafa Gives us a Twirl

Serena Williams was reluctant to discuss suggestions of sexism at the Australian Open after a male on-court interviewer sparked outrage by asking some female players to “give a twirl”. However, the world No1 acknowledged that men such as Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer would never be asked to do the same in post-match TV interviews.

Both Williams and Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard were asked to spin around to show off their outfits during on-court interviews in Melbourne, prompting an angry response on social media and accusations of sexism levelled at the TennisAustralia commentator Ian Cohen, who made the request.

Williams, a second-round winner over Vera Zvonareva on Thursday, revealed she had not enjoyed the experience, but would not be drawn on whether it was sexist or not.

The American said: “A commentator asked me to twirl. I wouldn’t ask Rafa or Roger to twirl. Whether it’s sexist or not, I don’t know. I can’t answer that.

“I didn’t really want to twirl because I was just like, you know, I don’t need all the extra attention. But, yeah, it was fine.

“I don’t think and look that deep into it. Life is far too short to focus on that. We have so many other problems we want to deal with that we should focus on. Whether I twirl or not, it’s not the end of the world. It’s about being positive and just moving forward.”

Bouchard looked slightly bemused by the request, which followed her straight-sets win over Kiki Bertens on Wednesday, admitting in her post-match press conference the question had taken her by surprise. “It was very unexpected. I mean, yeah, I don’t know. An old guy asking you to twirl, it was funny,” said the seventh seed.

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Serena Starts as Istanbul Favourite

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Serena Williams starts a strong favourite to win a second successive WTA Championships as the end-of-season finale begins in Istanbul on Tuesday.

The world number one has only lost four matches and won 10 titles this season, more than any other year of her career.

She will face Petra Kvitova, Agnieszka Radwanska and Angelique Kerber in the group stages in Turkey.

"It's a tough group," Williams said. "That's the thing about this event, you have to be ready from the first match."

Eight of the top nine in the world rankings - world number three Maria Sharapova is injured - are split into two groups of four, with the top two in each qualifying for the semi-finals.

Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who has beaten Williams twice this year, heads the other group, which includes China's Li Na, Sara Errani of Italy and Serb Jelena Jankovic.

Three group matches will be played on each of the first four days.

Tuesday's opening day sees Belarusian Azarenka start against Errani (15:00 BST) before Williams faces Germany's Kerber (17:00 BST) and Radwanska of Poland plays the Czech Republic's Kvitova (19:00 BST).

Williams, 32, won the French Open and US Open this year to take her total of Grand Slam titles to 17, one short of Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert and five behind Steffi Graf's Open era record of 22.

"I never thought I would have one of my best years this year, and now there is an opportunity to do even better," she added.

"I'm still looking to improve and...I have a lot of room for improvement. I am interested for next year to take my game to a new level, which I think I can do.

"It's going to be even tough for me to get to 18 [ Grand Slams]. Obviously that's my goal, but I take it one match at a time."

The American is aiming to become the first player to defend a WTA Championships crown since Justine Henin in 2007. If she achieves the feat, it would be her fourth title overall.

While Kvitova, who won in 2011, is a dangerous opponent on a fast indoor surface, neither she nor Radwanska has ever beaten Williams, while Kerber can boast one victory from their three previous meetings.

Jankovic is the only player to qualify this year who was not in the field 12 months ago. The Serb is back among the top eight of the season for the first time since 2010.

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Serena Ends Year No.1

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Serena Williams will end the year as the number one female player in the world after a phenomenal campaign which saw the American win two Grand Slams.

The 32-year-old has lost just four matches this year, winning nine titles, including the French and US Open.

It is the third time she has topped the rankings at the end of a calendar year.

Williams became the oldest player to hold the number one positionwhen, aged 31, the 17-time Grand Slam winner replaced Victoria Azarenka in February.

"Serena has proven time and time again throughout her career that she is an incredible champion, both on and off the court," said Women's Tennis Association (WTA) chairman and chief executive Stacey Allaster.

"This season she continues to rewrite the record books, proving she is one of the sport's greatest athletes of all time."

Williams will be presented with her trophy during the season-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul next month.

She will be joined by China's Li Na, who became the fifth player to qualify for the event, following in the footsteps of Williams, Azarenka, Maria Sharapova and Agnieszka Radwanska.

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Serena Wins Fifth US Open

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Serena Williams would have felt disappointed with her season had she not seen off Victoria Azarenka to win the US Open for a fifth time.

At 31, the American is more dominant than she has ever been, and her 7-5 6-7 (6/8) 6-1 victory over Azarenka in New York gave her a ninth title of the year.

She has lost only four matches all season, but two of those have come in grand slams, where traditionally she has been at her strongest.

When Azarenka recovered from 4-1 down to take the second set with Williams having twice served for the match, it seemed the world number one may have to contemplate more slam disappointment.

But Williams responded superbly and won the third set easily to add the US Open to the French Open title she clinched in June.

She said: "I felt almost disappointed with my year, to be honest. I felt like, yeah, I won the French Open, but I wasn't happy with my performances in the other two slams, and not even making it to the quarter-finals of one.

"So I definitely feel a lot better with at least a second grand slam under my belt this year."

Williams' victory gave her a 17th grand slam singles title, moving her level with Roger Federer and only one behind both Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova.

"It's an honour to be even with Roger," said Williams. "He's been such a great champion throughout the years, and he's just an unbelievable competitor and he's still playing, and he can probably still win more.

"He's just been so incredibly consistent, so we have had really different careers.

"Then to be compared with Chrissy and Martina - I can't necessarily compare myself to them, because numbers-wise they're still greater."

There were high hopes the match would be as dramatic as last year's final between the pair, which Williams won after Azarenka had served for the title, and it did not disappoint.

Williams struggled with the wind in the first set especially, casting panicked glances at her box and appearing distracted by her billowing dress and hair.

But Azarenka could not capitalise, and it looked like Williams would cruise to victory when she moved 4-1 ahead with two breaks of serve in the second set.

Azarenka is as big a fighter as Williams, though, and she hung on grimly and then seized her chance when the American got tight.

Twice Williams served for the match and twice Azarenka broke back, and the Belarusian went on to take the tie-break on her third opportunity.

It seemed like it would be a tough set for Williams to bounce back from but the world number one refocused and pulled away to clinch victory after two hours and 45 minutes.

Williams said: "I obviously would have preferred to close it out in straight sets. But going against a great opponent like Victoria, you have to be able to realise that that can happen and you have to keep fighting for everything.

"I thought, 'I have to stay positive'. It was very easy to get down. I didn't want to get down on myself.

"I wanted to be a little strict with myself so I could play better. I wanted to do different things and try to have a better performance."

Williams admitted she did not deal with the wind as well as she might have, saying: "The wind was unbelievable. It just got worse and worse. It never let up.

"But at this point you have to be able to play under any circumstances. It wasn't very easy. I think I made a lot of errors because of that. I definitely could have moved my feet better."

Azarenka was in tears at the end but felt there was nothing more she could have done.

The world number two described the determination of both players as rising like boiling water, and she said: "It was a great match.

"There was no let down. I think in the third set the momentum changed a little bit, and I kind of felt like I lost that momentum.

"But she really made it happen. In that particular moment she was tougher. She was more consistent and she deserved to win.

"I wish I could have done something better. I felt like I had opportunities in the first set as well. But it's okay. I did everything I could.

"The game overall, there are things that could have been better. But I gave my heart. I fought as hard as I could.

"So that's what is important for me, that I lost to a great champion. But I'm still going to have my head up."

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Williams Wins Swedish Open

World number one Serena Williams recovered from her shock early exit at Wimbledon by beating home hope Johanna Larsson to win the Swedish Open.

The American dropped serve twice in the first set but overcame those setbacks to win 6-4 6-1 in Bastad.

Williams, 31, has now won 51 matches and seven titles in 2013.

She had been a strong favourite to win her 17th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon earlier this month, but lost to Sabine Lisicki in the last 16.

"It was really good to come here and win after a disappointing Wimbledon, so hopefully this confidence will help me for the rest of the year,'' said the top seed.

Williams chose to return on clay at the relatively low-key Swedish event, and victory brought her a first ever title at an 'international' level tournament, the fourth tier below Grand Slams.

The second seed was Romanian Simona Halep, ranked 30th in the world, so it was no surprise that Williams won all five matches without dropping a set.

She did not have it all her own way in the final, however, struggling in the early stages and letting out a huge scream when she finally slammed a forehand winner at 3-1 down.

Larsson, the Swedish number one and world number 76, had her chances but could not convert as she struggled to make enough first serves.

Williams eventually found her range and from 4-3 down lost just two more games on her way to capturing the 53rd WTA title of her career.

She remains unbeaten on clay this season, having also won in Rome, Madrid and Charleston.

In Hamburg, Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis could not follow upSaturday's win over Roger Federer with another victory, as Fabio Fognini won the German Tennis Championships final 4-6 7-6 (10-8) 6-2.

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Williams Wins BNP Paribas Istanbul

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Serena Williams won her third WTA Championships title with a 6-4 6-3 win over Maria Sharapova in Istanbul.

Williams did not drop a set all week and Sharapova was unable to make much impact on the American's serve.

"Maria won the last time we played in the Championships final [in 2004] and she's ranked ahead of me so I had nothing to lose," she said.

World number three Williams, 31, has won seven titles in 2012, including the US Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics.

The 15-time major winner leads Russian world number two Sharapova 10-2 in head-to-heads and has won her last 13 matches against top-four players.

"It feels great to have achieved my dream," added Williams.

"The Turkish crowd were fantastic. I have never seen so many signs with my name on them before."

Williams is back to the top of her game after battling career-threatening injury and illness in 2010 and 2011.

And she said 2012 was every bit as good as 2002 and 2003, when she held all four Grand Slam titles at once - the so-called 'Serena Slam'.

"It's awesome. To come back after being in the hospital, I feel so happy whether I win or lose," she said.

Williams finished the year with a 59-4 win-loss record and since her first-round defeat at the French Open, which Sharapova won, the American is 31-1.

There was better news for Russia in the doubles final as qualifiers Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova beat second seeds Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

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