As promised, Women's Tennis Blog is continuing its tradition of revising on-court outfits from the season behind us. This year's retrospections will start with the best-dressed WTA player – Nike-clad Maria Sharapova.

Sharapova started the season late, because of her career-threatening shoulder injury, playing her first match of 2009 at the BNP Paribas Open in March. She was introducing herself to competitive tennis slowly, playing doubles first, but her style had to be spot-on from the very beginning, and it was.

People argued that Sharapova’s Roland Garros dress had too much fabric, but I liked it, and I especially favored the blue color against the red clay. Read more »

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Fourth seeds Venus and Serena Williams of the United States have won their fourth Wimbledon doubles title by defeating third seeds Samantha Stosur and Rennae Stubbs of Australia 7-6(4) 6-4.

The Williams sisters have now won their second successive Wimbledon doubles final, just hours after playing each other in the singles final for the second year in a row.

The three previous sisters’ Wimbledon doubles crowns came in 2000, 2002, and 2008. (photo courtesy of Life)

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World number two Serena Williams has today won her 11th Grand Slam title, and in the post-match presser she wasn’t as polite as her sister Venus, but instead made fun of the WTA ranking system and hence of the current top-ranked player Dinara Safina.

Here’s what Serena said in the interview:

Q. How much of a motivation is it for you to try and regain the world No. 1 ranking?

SERENA WILLIAMS: You know, I'm not super motivated. I think if you hold three Grand Slam titles maybe you should be No. 1, but not on the WTA Tour obviously, so…

You know, my motivation is maybe just to win another Grand Slam and stay No. 2, I guess (laughter).

Q. Does that disappoint you?

SERENA WILLIAMS: No. If it did, I would go crazy just thinking about it. I think anyone really could. That's just shocking. But whatever. It is what it is. I'd rather definitely be No. 2 and hold three Grand Slams in the past year than be No. 1 and not have any.

Q. Do you see yourself as No. 1?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I see myself as No. 2. That's where I am. I think Dinara did a great job to get to No. 1. She won Rome and Madrid (laughter). (photo: Ralf Reinecke)

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Serena Williams won her 11th singles Grand Slam title, and her second of the season, by beating five-time Wimbledon champion and twice defending champion Venus Williams 7-6(3) 6-2.

The first set went with serve, and was decided in a tiebreak. In the second set, second seed Serena broke third seed Venus in the sixth game to lead 4-2, and then won Venus' next service game as well to clinch the grass-court Grand Slam title on her fourth match point. Prior to this final, Venus Williams had won 34 sets in a row at Wimbledon.

Serena has become the first player in women's tennis history to save match point en route to a Grand Slam singles title three times. This time she saved a match point in the semifinal against Elena Dementieva, the longest women's semifinal at Wimbledon in the era of Open tennis, and did the same thing at the 2003 and 2005 Australian Open.

Serena has now won Wimbledon three times, in 2002, 2003 and 2009.

The Williams sisters, defending champions in doubles, are playing the Wimbledon doubles final later today. (photo courtesy of Life.com)

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Venus Williams demolished world No.1 Dinara Safina 6-1 6-0 in Wimbledon semifinals, but in press-conference the American seven-time Grand Slam champion showed great respect for her opponent, and defended both the Russian and the state of women’s tennis in general.

Here’s an extract from the interview:

Q. This isn't your fault obviously because you played really well, but it's embarrassing for women's tennis to see the No. 1 destroyed in that way, isn't it?

VENUS WILLIAMS: Why do you put it like that?

Q. You played very well.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Are you trying to be down on women's tennis?

Q. I'm trying to be down on the way that Safina is the world No. 1 representing women's tennis.

VENUS WILLIAMS: So you're trying to be down basically.

Q. Not on women's tennis, no.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Okay, because I don't deal with down at all.

Q. It's not down.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I'm just making sure you're not trying to be down, because I respect Dinara Safina immensely, and I think you should, too.

Q. I do.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Thanks.

One more think that could defend Safina is that Venus was playing on grass, her favorite surface, which is not Dinara's favorite surface. On clay, Dinara was the winner over Venus, this year in Rome, in three sets though. (photo courtesy of Life)

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