Makarova downs Serena Williams in stunning upset

In a stunning upset, No. 56 ranked Ekaterina Makarova of Russia defeated No. 12 seed, Serena Williams of the USA in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3 in round 4 of the Australian Open.

Williams had seven double faults, several to set up break points, to allow Makarova to earn one of the biggest wins of her career. Makarova now advances to the quarterfinals against either 2008 champion Maria Sharapova or Sabine Lisicki

Williams came into the tournament with a badly-injured left ankle that forced her to pull out of a warmup tournament in Brisbane two weeks ago. In the match she appeared to be moving well, but made 37 unforced errors and had her service broken while trying to stay in the match.

Serena Williams wins easily in Melbourne

No. 13 seed, Serena Williams of the USA, had a relatively easy win over No. 44 ranked, Tamira Paszek of Austria in the 1st round of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Tuesday.

After an uneven start, the 30-year-old former No. 1, Williams, won the last 5 games of the match, serving 4 aces to win one of those games, and served up 12 aces in the match.

Williams’ participation in this year’s event had appeared in doubt after she injured her ankle in Brisbane two weeks ago but she moved well throughout the match and did not appear hampered by the injury.

Clijsters works through rehab, plans for 2012 season

Australian Open defending champion, Kim Clijsters, is planning to try to defend her title in Melbourne in 2012.

Clijsters has not played much since winning her first Australian Open title last January. She has been hampered by foot, shoulder and abdominal injuries. She dropped out of the top 10 this week, marking the first time since May 2007 that Clijsters, Serena Williams, and Venus Williams were not in the top 10.

Clijsters is back on the practice courts preparing to play in an exhibition in Belgium in December, trying to get on track for the 2012 season. Clijsters wrote in her blog on Tuesday:

Serena Williams withdraws unexpectedly from China Open

The former World No. 1, Serena Williams of the USA, and 2011 U.S. Open runner-up has pulled out of the China Open for a second year in a row.

Serena was scheduled to play in Beijing, but the tournament website said the American star failed to show up on Friday, the day she was due to arrive.

Stosur dominates to claim U.S. Open title over Serena Williams

Samantha Stosur of Australia, completely dominated Serena Williams of the USA to claim the 2011 U.S. Open championship in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3.

Playing in only her 2nd Grand Slam final, Samantha pulled off what many would consider a big upset over 3-time U.S. Open champion, 13-time Grand Slam champion, Serena. It is the first career Grand Slam title for Samantha.

Kvitova downs Sharapova for Wimbledon championship

No. 8 seed, Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, realized her dream to become a Wimbledon champion by defeating a former Wimbledon champion, No. 5 seed, Maria Sharapova of Russia in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.

It looked to be a great final from the start, as Sharapova was finally able to make it back to the Wimbledon final after a seven-year drought. But 21-year-old Kvitova was up to the task in her first Wimbledon final with a powerful lefty serve and powerful lforehand that kept Sharapova off balance throughout the match.

Bartoli stops Serena Williams’ hopes for comeback

No. 9 seed, Marion Bartoli of France, shows her excitement after defeating Serena Williams of the USA in round four of the 2011 Wimbledon championships in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6(8-6).

Serena had no answer for the determination and powerful strokes hit by Marion. Serena seemed a little off balance the first set, and picked up her game somewhat during the 2nd set, but to no avail. Marion took the match in the tie-break.

It was the first time Marion has defeated Serena. Serena led the head-to-head series 2-0. In fact, Marion had never won a set off of Serena in their previous meetings.

Serena Williams tops Rezai in first match in almost a year

After not playing for almost a year, Serena Williams of the USA won her first match at Wimbledon over France’s Aravane Rezai in a hard fought 3-setter, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, closing it out with her 13th ace.

Serena had been off the court for almost a year, first because of a cut tendon in her foot after stepping on broken glass in a restaurant, then by a blood clot in her lungs.

Serena fought through a midmatch slump, then reasserted command over her French opponent in the third set with a big serve and powerful groundstrokes. She showed why she is still considered a title favorite despite her long absence and her No. 7 seeding.

Serena Williams has emergency treatment for blood clot in lungs

Serena Williams received emergency treatment for a blood clot in her longs on Monday at a Los Angeles hospital, then returned to her home in the city.

Nicole Chabot, a spokeswoman for Williams, said that the tennis star “underwent emergency treatment for a hematoma suffered as a result of treatment for a more critical situation.”

This latest medical scare comes roughly a week after Williams suffered a pulmonary embolism, which was discovered while she was in Los Angeles.

Serena Williams withdraws again, announces a new start-up date

Serena Williams is at it again, and it is getting old. She withdrew last week from the Nike Clash of Champions exhibition March 8 in Eugene, Ore. It was going to be the first time she had played publicly since July. She has been out with a still mysterious foot injury for which she has given varying explanations.