Serena Williams made her twentieth or so press appearance in New York over the last few days and this one was perhaps most rewarding. She unveiled her very life-like figure at Times Square Madame Tussauds and became only the fourth female player to be honored in such way. We’re not sure if Venus was upset over this minor snub.

Who cares if she hasn’t played a competitive match since 1879? Anna Kournikova can still pose and wink better than 98% of current top 100. The appealing former (doubles) #1 completely stole at the show at K-Swiss fashion event in New York last night.

Even with all the sponsorships, most players can’t boast tennis bags like these. LaCorte have created these stylish accessories in three different styles, all made of top grain leathers, fine canvas and crafted hardware. These beauties are a definite must.

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When Maria Sharapova arrived to New York for US Open last year it was bittersweet. She was there for all the pre-tournament activities but she pulled out of Queens due to strained shoulder. This time around, the three-time Grand Slam winner arrived to town as a legitimate contender having just beaten three seeds in Canada and reaching the final at that tournament. Last night, Tiffany & Co and InStyle magazine hosted a cocktail party on top of Cooper Square Hotel in Sharapova’s honor and the star caught up with the Royal Box.

You’re now on top of New York after that very long American road trip…
I know! It feels fantastic to be here. But I’ve had four great weeks coming into Open so I’m excited to be here. It’s quiet now, I have few events, some practice matches and then it all starts. And hopefully I’ll be ready for full two weeks.
You were seeded this morning!
Yes, I wasn’t actually aware that even had a chance to be seeded until the semis in Toronto. It’s not something that I was concerned with over because honestly I wasn’t seeded in my last two tournaments. And if you’re not ready to be a top player in the first round you’re not going to on top of your game in the later rounds. So, you better be ready on day 1! But it’s nice to come here on a strong streak.
Was it difficult for you to adjust to the tour schedule after so many months off?
I feel like I got back to my schedule pretty fast. It sucks you in fast. My goal was to play lots of matches and testing my shoulder and I certainly did that.
Did you do anything special with all the free time off?
I wish! It was really just lots of rehab and recovery all really leading up to this moment. But of course I actually had a lot of free time to sit down with sponsors and actually pursue some amazing opportunities. But I couldn’t be more excited to be back in the city.
What are you wearing today?
A Chloe dress and actually the shoes that I designed myself for Cole Haan.
Tell me about being here with Tiffany’s…
I of course adore Tiffany’s but I think I was more humbled to work with Frank Gehry. I was shocked that he wanted to work with me and actually invited me to the studio to collaborate. We discussed what was important to me in terms of design and that’s lightness and length. His inspiration was the flow of the river to compliment my movement on court.
How was his studio?
It was mind-blowing. He showed me his sketches for buildings in little cities in Russia to towns in America. Just the way he works is mind-blowing.
You’ve been to Guggenheim, right?
Of course! It’s truly awesome.
What does tomorrow look like?
I’m up early in the morning and off to Queens for practice. Even though it seemed like I played like twenty weeks in the row, this is a whole new challenge and tournament.

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World’s #2 player (sorry Rafa), Andy Murray unveiled his Fred Perry look in Gotham today and…it looks almsot exactly like his Wimledon look excpet he has a sharp and tidy blue polo that will perfectly comliment the court surface to confuse his opponents.

What better place for a tennis match than the Hamptons in August? On August 30th, East Hampton’s Ross School will host its Grand Slam Winners Exhibition Match in honor of the sport’s leading legend, Andre Agassi. To toast the Olympic gold medalist and 8-time Grand Slam winner commonly known as “The Punisher,” a selection of fellow tennis champs will duke it out during a grueling all-star doubles match. Naturally, Agassi will preside over the festivities–but the real fun won’t begin until Hamptons hams Alec Baldwin and Christie Brinkley try their forehand at playing the pros.

Something was in the year this past week in Canada and Ohio. We’re talking about the whole lot of yellow. Ok, Nadal technically wore blue but his bright headband still made an impression. But all this yellow fever didn’t bring much success to anyone except Jelena Jankovic who saved a few million match points during her semifinal match en route to her deserved title. Sometime tells us we’ll be seeing this pretty dress again in the near future.

Pay attention to the cover lines of the new Vogue September issue. It looks like someone has made it up to Roger.

New fall campaigns are being released this week and that includes Cole Haan which once again puts Maria Sharapova in the midst of its big ad push. So there top WTA girls…Maria might still be climbing the ranking at 49 in the world but you don’t have an ad that appears in Harper’s Bazaar.

Polo Ralph Lauren  just introduced their 2009 US Open collection and they are certainly going for the Golden Era of 1930’s athletics look. The limited-edition short-sleeved ball polo is adorned with pieced chevron stripes, while the guy’s tennis polo is breathy and cleverly vintage looking. Both shirts are certainly timeless and your mixed doubles opponents will be filled with jealousy.