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On a peaceful Saturday in Perth, 12,000 miles from the clamour and bombast at Flushing Meadows, Margaret Court has just seen Serena Williams thwarted in a final tilt at equalling her place among the tennis immortals. While “greatest of all time” messages flash up on the electronic tickers inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, the statistical greatest, the woman with 24 grand slam singles titles to the departing Williams’ 23, is at the end of this long-distance telephone call. It is a distinction that now looks destined to last another generation at least. And yet the realisation brings a complex swirl of...

Australia's Margaret Court believes she doesn't get as much credit from the tennis world as she deserves for her 24 Grand Slam singles titles and that Serena Williams doesn't reciprocate her admiration. Williams -- who holds 23 Slam titles, one shy of the record Court set from 1960 to 1973 -- was feted in many quarters as the greatest tennis player of all time in the wake of what is expected to be her final appearance at Flushing Meadows after recently telling the world she is ready to start "evolving'' away from her playing days. Williams, who will turn 41...

Things turned spicy on Channel 9 this morning during a heated debate about Australian tennis legend Margaret Court. The panel on Sports Sunday was discussing how Tennis Australia (TA) handled its announcement yesterday it had invited Court to attend the Australian Open as a special guest to mark the 50-year anniversary of her incredible 1970 Grand Slam, when she won all four majors. In the same statement yesterday, TA also delivered Court a stinging backhand by saying it does not agree with her views that gay marriage should not be legal, which have “hurt and demeaned many in our community”....

German lady takes it in straight sets.... 6/3, 6/3.

PARIS — Show Court 1, one of the biggest stadiums at the Australian Open, was rechristened Margaret Court Arena in 2003 to honor the player who dominated women’s tennis in the 1960s and still holds the record for the most Grand Slam titles. It is unclear what the stadium will be called when the tournament begins in Melbourne next January. Court, 74, now a pastor in Perth, has reignited debate about her legacy and how the sport should celebrate her by making a series of inflammatory comments recently about gays and same-sex marriage. Her beliefs are not new — her...