November 09, 2009

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The curtain has closed on the 2009 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season after two exciting season-ending events in Doha, Qatar and Bali, Indonesia.

The top eight players in the world gathered in for the prestigious Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha. When all was said and done, it was Serena Williams who beat her big sister Venus 6-2, 7-6(4) in the star-studded final to cap off a stellar week of tennis. Williams went 3-0 in her round robin group, besting Elena Dementieva and Svetlana Kuznetsova in straight sets, then saved a match point to beat Venus. She went on to defeat Caroline Wozniacki in the semifinals before getting the better of her sister for the second time.

Her triumph marks the second time that Serena has taken home the coveted season-ending crown, having previously accomplished the feat in 2001. She has now beaten Venus four times in a row and holds a 13-10 lead in their head-to-head meetings.

"Now my losing streak in tournaments that aren't Grand Slams is over!" exclaimed Serena, who had not won a tournament outside the Grand Slams since Charleston in April 2008. "Coming out here and doing well is so exciting. I totally didn't expect to come here and win.”

Meanwhile, France’s Aravane Rezai won the biggest title of her career on Sunday at the inaugural Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions in Bali, defeating her compatriot Marion Bartoli in the final. The event featured the ten highest-ranked players who won International tournaments in 2009 along with two wildcard recipients.