Maria Sharapova

With only the Davis Cup still left to play for after another action-packed tennis year, PA Sport looks at the highlights from the 2008 campaign:
 
MEN'S PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Andy Murray
 
Murray started the year as a player on the fringe of the true elite and proceeded to establish himself as very much part of it, claiming two Masters Series titles and finishing runner-up in the US Open.
 

Life on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour can be grueling, but it's not all catching red-eye flights and racing to the courts. While traveling and competing around the world, players also get to experience the nightlife and local flavor that each city on the Tour has to offer. From the clubs of Miami to the beer halls of Germany, check out the highlights of the Tour's year of fabulous parties.
 
Wimbledon

The WTA Tour season came to a close Sunday when Venus Williams won the Tour Championships singles title, and $1.3 million U.S., before rather sparse crowds in Doha, Qatar.
 
There is still more tennis to be played; a number of smaller women's events on the ITF Circuit offering between $10,000 and $100,000 in total prize money will take place right through to the end of the year.
 
But the major leagues are taking a break. And with that, we offer up the annual Open Court Awards.
 

Venus Williams' title at the WTA Championships on Sunday marked the end of a turbulent year in women's tennis which saw six changes at the number one position after Justine Henin's retirement.
 
The Belgian Henin was tipped to dominate 2008 after an amazing unbeaten second half of 2007, but her win streak came to an end at the Australian Open in January and she then retired from tennis on May 14 at the age of 26.
 

Details, details.
 
For well more than two years, the leadership of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour has been working toward its overhaul of the tour for 2009. The Roadmap has bumped forward, and although it has been roughed up in negotiations and beaten back in some areas, it has managed to get through the approval process in some kind of recognizable shape.
 
Now, just a couple of months before it officially goes into effect, the players finally are taking a close look at the Roadmap and realizing they don't like some of what they see.

The tennis season is just about over. Yes, it seems it ended Labor Day weekend with the U.S. Open, but it has actually been going strong since. The end is near, though, and the first up is the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season-ending championships in Doha, Qatar.
 

World number one Jelena Jankovic will head the field at the newly-announced World Team Challenge in Hong Kong.
 
Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams will also be involved as part of their warm-up for the Australian Open.
 
The event sees four teams consisting of three players representing Europe, Russia, the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region.
 

Sania Mirza will spearhead the Asia-Pacific challenge in the World Team Challenge tournament in Hong Kong next year.

The January 7-10 tournament, a new concept and warm-up competition for the Australian Open, will feature four teams representing Europe, Russia, the Americas and Asia-Pacific.

Jelena Jankovic, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams will spearhead a new World Team Challenge in Hong Kong next year as part of their warm-up for the Australian Open.
 
The January 7-10 tournament will feature four teams representing Europe, Russia, the Americas and Asia-Pacific.
 
Each team will consist of three players competing in singles and doubles, with world number one Jankovic leading Team Europe and Williams heading the Americas.
 

Although she hadn't officially qualified yet, things were looking good for Maria Sharapova to be a part of the Sony Ericsson Championships - Doha 2008, as she was the leading player in the hunt for the remaining berths for the elite eight-woman event. But a nagging right shoulder injury that has kept her out of action since Wimbledon will now keep her out through the end of the 2008 season.