ALLAN THE MAN

It was a match full of drama, especially on the third set, but eventually it was Belarussian Victoria Azarenka that prevailed at the Western & Southern Open 2013 in Cincinnati after the world number two defeated top-ranked Serena Williams 2-6, 6-2, 7-6.

 It was a match reminiscent of the US Open 2012 final between these two ladies but this time it was Williams who served for the match but was broken to force a tiebreaker in the third set.

Rafael Nadal’s resurgent 2013 campaign continued on Sunday with a 7-6(8), 7-6(3) victory over John Isner to clinch his maiden Western & Southern Open title. Nadal claimed a 26th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title and 59th overall.

Nadal extended his career-best hard court winning streak to 15-0 in 2013, while joining Novak Djokovic as the only players to win five Masters 1000 crowns in a single year.

Rafael Nadal ousted Tomas Berdych in their Cincinnati semi-final, prevailing 7-5, 7-6(4). Nadal converted on his second match point to extend his winning streak on hard courts to 14-0 in 2013 and improve to 15-1 against Top 10 opponents. 

The Spaniard is into a 37th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final, where he will be seeking a 26th title.

In an email statement, world number three Maria Sharapova said that she had ended the coaching partnership with tennis legend Jimmy Connors following her surprise opening round exit at the Cincinnati Open this week.

“It’s not the right fit for this time in my career,” Sharapova stated in an email sent to TENNIS.com.

World No.3 Rafael Nadal has come back to defeat Roger Federer 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 in their blockbuster quarter-final duel under the lights in Cincinnati. It was their 31st encounter, one of their very best, and one that ended in dramatic fashion on Nadal's fifth match point. 

[ WATCH W&S OPEN CINCINNATI TENNIS LIVE STREAMING HERE ]

Nadal, last week’s champion in Montreal, extended his winning streak on hard courts in 2013 to 13-0 with the win. He has moved one step closer to claiming his fifth ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown of the year, a feat he has yet to accomplish in his storied career. 

Rafael Nadal set up another meeting with great rival Roger Federer by winning his third-round match against Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati on Thursday.

[ WATCH W&S OPEN CINCINNATI LIVE STREAMING HERE ]

In addition to capturing his 50th match victory of the season, Nadal improved to 12-0 on hardcourts, having already won Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Montreal this year.

Maria Sharapova's return to WTA tournament play after more than a month away was short-lived following an upset loss to 17th-ranked American Sloane Stephens 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in the second round of the Western & Southern Open on Tuesday.

[ W&S OPEN CINCINNATI LIVE STREAMING]

In a match that lasted two hours and 22 minutes, Stephens overcame double faults on two match points to pick up her first victory over Sharapova in four meetings.

The 2013 Western and Southern Open is a tennis tournament to be played on outdoor hard courts. It was part of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 and of the WTA Premier. 

The tournament will take place at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio, near Cincinnati, United States, from August 12 to August 19 2013. 2013 Men's Singles Draw  / 2013 Women's Singles Draw