Serena stops Stosur in 1st Rnd 3-Set Thriller!

I only saw the match via LIVE Scoring and I must say, I almost called the Rescue Squad a few times. There were so many twists and turns and a "controversial let" that was not called by the chair umpire. I thought that Serena was going to close it out in straight sets. After 2.5 hours, and while saving 4 matchpoints, Serena defeated Samantha Stosur 6-3, 6-7, 7-5. What a first round match and treat for those in attendance! I was on the edge of my seat when Serena kept losing her serve and when Samantha went up a break in the 3rd set and then attempted to serve for the match. Serena had not played competitively prior to this match since the Sony Ericsson Championships in November. I'm sure there was some "rust" to shake off.

Serena is a fighter and she showed what a champion is made of. Back against the wall and matchpoints down, Serena did what she does best, and that's FIGHT! Samantha gave Serena some stiff competition in this first round match. It appears that there were MANY errors and double faults but when the match was on the line (quite a few times), Serena stuck around and refused to lose. Way to go SERENA!!! They appeared to play this match as if it were for the title. I'm going to bed now (I have to get up early for church) but a more "detailed" review of this match is on the way.

Practice Makes Perfect (Part 2)

Medibank International TV Schedule (U.S.)

The TENNIS Channel is scheduled to air both Semifinals of the Medibank International tournament as well as the Final. The Semifinals will air on Thurs. Jan. 15th @ 8am (1st semi) and @ 10am (2nd semi). The matches will repeat at 1:00pm (1st semi) and 3:00pm (2nd semi) EST. The FINAL will air LIVE on the TENNIS Channel on Friday, Jan. 16th at 3:30am EST and will re-air at 3:00pm EST.

Medibank International - 1st Rnd (Sunday)

1st Round
Serena Williams (USA) vs Samantha Stosur (AUS)

Serena leads Head-to-Head 1-0

2nd Match of the day at the Ken Rosewall Arena

Not before 12:00pm (Saturday, 8pm EST)

Diamonds are Serena's best friend...

IT will be the kind of entrance fit for the red carpet in Hollywood rather than a blue plexicushion tennis court when Serena Williams takes on Samantha Stosur today at Sydney's Medibank International. Williams will be dripping with diamonds, draped in a new $3.5million necklace, when she starts her Australian campaign on centre court. The 27-year-old American made friends with Sydney diamond designer Nic Cerrone in a visit to his boutique store in Leichhardt yesterday.

When the Italian asked if she liked diamonds, Williams gushed "they're my best friends''. Cerrone has loaned Williams a necklace sparkling with 427 diamonds. When told of it's $3.5million value, Williams raised an eyebrow - "American or Australian dollars?'' The necklace is worth as much as Stosur has earned in her career. It is worth almost six times the $638,298 prize pool the women's field will be fighting for.

"I know she is going to come out and play aggressively,'' Stosur said. "I've just got to try to go with her, stay positive and give it my best shot.'' Williams adds a touch of bling to the Medibank International as players look to find their feet for next week's Australian Open. The flamboyant American has worn diamonds on court before, causing some controversy at the 2004 US Open when one of her $40,000 earrings fell off during the match.

Cerrone's diamond designs have decorated some of the world's biggest stars, such as Janet Jackson, Claudia Schiffer and Jennifer Lopez. Even Cerrone's pet, an Italian greyhound named Charlie, walks around in a diamond-encrusted collar. "She's very unique, she can have fun,'' Cerrone said of Williams. "She has the personality to pull it off.'' Williams tried on a diamond bracelet with 1500 stones and cheekily swung her arm in a tennis service action.

While she won't play in the necklace, it could be the most outrageous thing Williams has worn onto court since she won the 2002 US Open in her figure-hugging cat suit. Diamonds were a temporary distraction yesterday, Williams only making the visit after a tough hit-out on the practice court at Homebush.

Williams said she had come to Australia to add to her NINE Grand Slam titles, not her jewelery collection. Having withdrawn from the Hopman Cup to focus on recovering from a hamstring strain, Williams said the Sydney tournament was vital to her Australian Open plans.

- Article by By Chris Wilson / The Daily Telegraph
- Images courtesy of the Official Medibank International website

Serena in action SUNDAY @ Medibank (Sydney)

Serena draws Sam Stosur in 1st Rnd @ Medibank

Top seed, US Open champion and world No.2 Serena Williams will begin her Australian campaign at the Medibank International Sydney with a first round match against Australian No.1 Samantha Stosur. If the American world No.2 can get past Stosur, she could face another Australian - Casey Dellacqua, who plays Italian Sara Errani - in the second round.

Practice Makes Perfect

Serena practicing for the Medibank International (Sydney)

Serena's 2009 Australian Open Gear

Nike Women's Spring Serena Day Dress

Nike Air Max Smash Women's Shoe Wh/Berry

Wilson K Factor KBlade Team Racquets

Wilson K Factor KPro Black/Gold Bags

Sibling Rivalry: Cookies Will Crumble

Venus and Serena Williams have branched out from tennis to the second sport, challenging Eli and Peyton Manning in an exciting DSRL lick off, January 18, 2009. "The Mannings are going to get served!" the sisters said as they perfected their twist, lick and dunk skills in preparation for the match. "No Hail Mary pass will save them in this match!"

Hold onto your milk, there's going to be unbelievable cookie action when the Williams sisters and the Mannings brothers lick off for the DSRL crown on January 18, 2009. The two sets of siblings are set to lick off against each other in an event that has been dubbed in some circles as "The Thrilla with Vanilla". One thing is for sure, cookies will crumble! To see what happens or to find out more about DSRL, check out DSRL.com.

(Below is the original commercial which aired during the 2008 U.S. Open).

Serena's Serious: Ready for Sydney

AND so she arrived with Ray-Bans shading her brown eyes, and black, shiny leggings highlighting her famous curves. Serena Williams gently moved her two pink suitcases, tennis bag, black suitcase, posy of flowers and handbag through the crowded Sydney Airport arrivals hall, all the while smiling, chatting to the press. There was, of course, a little bling. A diamond-laden, heart-shaped necklace decorated her decolletage and after only few minutes in the country, there were some whispers about her derriere as she went to climb into a hire car. Did it look smaller? Bigger? The consensus was they'd find out about her fitness and form on the tennis court - which is why she is here in Sydney.

The world No.2 is the star of the show at the Medibank International, which starts on Sunday. Among a few questions fired at the nine-time grand slam singles winner were the staple fashion queries. This was the woman who warmed up at Wimbledon in a white trenchcoat. The player famous for wearing a black catsuit at the US Open. Did she have any "special fashions" she planned to wear while she was in Australia? "Always," Williams said, almost airily. "It wouldn't be the same if I didn't."It will be an exciting year for the 27-year-old if she snatches back the No.1 ranking. It's something elder sister Venus also has her eye on.

The Sydney tournament is packed with talent, with three of the world's top four women due to contest the event. World No.3 Dinara Safina and No.4 Elena Dementieva are also in town. Williams said she couldn't specify who her biggest rival would be. "Oh, whoever my first rival of the tournament is." Her hamstring is fine, by the way. It had originally caused her to pull out of the Hopman Cup in Perth but now everything is running sweetly. "I'm good, yeah," Williams said. "It's excellent I don't have any hammy problems. I'm good. It [my preparation] has been good, it's been positive, very positive."

Williams hopes the Sydney tournament will provide a good base as she aims for her fourth Australian Open title. Her last Australian grand slam win in 2007 was a momentous one. In the lead-up she overcame relentless criticism of her weight and off-court pursuits - fashion and a movie script. From a world ranking of 81, and still coming to grips with the murder of her half-sister, Yetunde Price, she won her third Australian Open. Williams has been busy off the court, adding a jewelry and accessories line to her portfolio. She also opened the Serena Williams Secondary School near Nairobi, Africa, penned an autobiography and offers relationship advice to fans on her website.

-- Article by Jessica Halloran (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Serena arrives in Sydney

Serena Williams recovered from hamstring problem, will play in Sydney

WORLD No.2 Serena Williams has recovered from a hamstring injury and is ready to launch an assault for a fourth Australian Open crown. The nine-time grand slam winner, and the No.1 seed for the WTA Tour Medibank International in Sydney, gave herself the all clear when she arrived in Australia on Thursday. Williams, the reigning US Open champion, was scheduled to begin her year in the Hopman Cup in Perth, partnering James Blake, but she pulled out last month with a hamstring injury."I don't think I have any hammy (hamstring) problems," she said.". I'm good, yeah." Williams finished last season ranked behind Jelena Jankovic, having hit the top spot for four weeks, and she is planning another shot at the No.1 ranking."I'm close," Williams said."I'm just looking forward to playing in the tournament here."Williams, who won the Australian Open in 2007, 2005 and 2003, is returning to Sydney for the first time in seven years.

Tennis Lessons at Williams Tennis Academy

The Venus and Serena Williams Tennis Academy located at the Arthur Ashe Tennis Center of L.A. has announced it will begin its next eight-week ,Wednesday night adult group tennis classes tonight (Jan. 7). Master tennis instructor Le George Mauldin will teach hour-long classes between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. for eight Wednesdays through Feb. 18. Rackets are provided.

All classes will take place at the Rancho Cienega Sports Complex located at 5001 Rodeo Boulevard in Los Angeles. The eight-week session is $88. Limited space is available. For more information or to sign up, please call Le George Mauldin at (323) 392-6864 or email info@tenniswithlegeorge.com. Additionally, the Venus and Serena Williams Tennis Academy is open seven days a week with instructors available for private, semi-private, and group lessons. Visit the Web site here: http://www.tenniswithlegeorge.com/.

Article courtesy of EURweb.com

Serena on Million Dollar Password (Video Clip)

Serena's Aussie '09 Outlook (ESPN Video)

No More Tiers: Premier and International

Premier Tournaments is the new category for tennis tournaments of the Women's Tennis Association for the 2009 WTA Tour. Premier Tournaments are replacing Tier I and Tier II events, but also reducing number of tournaments to 20 (from 26 Tier I/II events). Premier Tournaments are designed for the Top Players and offer more money. Tier III and IV are replaced with International Tournaments category. (There are 30 tournaments, with a prize money for every event at $200,000, except for season-ending Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions in Bali, which has a prize money of $600,000).

Premier events include:

Premier Mandatory - Four mandatory, $4.5 million equal prize money combined events anchoring calendar in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Beijing

Premier 5 - Five $2 million events in Dubai, Rome, Cincinati, Toronto/Montreal and Tokyo

Premier $700 - Ten events with a prize money from $600,000 to $1 million.

Season-ending WTA Tour Championships, with a prize money of $4.45 million

Serena's 2009 Tennis Schedule (Non-Official)

Happy New Year! I am soooo happy that Serena's first tournament of 2009 is about to begin. Even though I am not aware of Serena's OFFICIAL schedule for 2009, I have taken it upon myself to list what I refer to as a "schedule of possibilities" for the 9 time Grand Slam Champion. (Granted, she is almost guaranteed to play the Grand Slams and Miami). I have listed a schedule (along the right side panel of the blog) that would seem like a piece of cake for current World #1, Jelena Jankovic, but we know that Serena is not playing every one of these tournaments. As tournament dates are confirmed, I will update the 2009 Tennis Calendar (adding or removing tournaments) to reflect such.

Serena, Lil' Wayne and Gatorade

Mega rap star Lil' Wayne has been chosen as one of the voice-overs for the newly designed Gatorade beverage. In a new commercial for the popular sports drink, Weezy is heard narrating a description of what "g" represents, as popular sports figures like Dwayne Wade, SERENA WILLIAMS and Bill Russell glare into the camera.

"[G's] the emblem of a warrior, it's the swagger of an athlete, a champion and dynasty," Weezy says in the commercial. "It's gifted, golden, genuine and glorious. It is a lower-case god. It's the goat. Ha-ha. The greatest of all time." As the 60-second video continues to scroll past other public figures, including the Yankee's Derek Jeter holding a bat and Muhammad Ali facing off with his fists, Weezy wraps up the meaning of "G." "What's G," he asks. "It is the heart, hustle and soul of the game. That's G."

Aiming for a new look, Gatorade's parent company, PepsiCo, is using the new "G" campaign as an opportunity to create new packaging and rename line extensions. "For Gatorade," the company wrote in a statement, "G represents the heart, hustle and soul of athleticism and will become a badge of pride for anyone who sweats."

-- Article courtesy of SOHH.com. SOHH.com (Support Online Hip Hop) is a hip hop news website.

Serena to appear on Million Dollar Password

Catch Serena Williams on this Sunday's (January 4th) episode of Million Dollar Password at 8:00pm EST on CBS. Regis Philbin hosts MILLION DOLLAR PASSWORD, a modern update of one of television's greatest game shows. This update takes the classic game and brings it to the 21st century with big celebrities, big money and big stakes. Contestants team up with some of the hottest stars to earn up to one million dollars. One player from the team is told secret passwords and can use only one-word clues to get the teammate to guess them. If the player and the celebrity can work well together and become a solid team, that player could uncover the MILLION DOLLAR PASSWORD.