Fans of both tennis and music have been given a sneak preview of Serena Williams's attempt to move into the world of music.

The 30-year-old recorded some songs in a Florida studio last year, and a minute-long demo has been leaked across the internet showcasing the star's rap 'skills'.

Serena's rap is an autobiographical piece that mixes the tennis player's customary feisty attitude and love of bling ("I can't see the haters through these Gucci glasses") with unexpectedly dry comedy lines that we couldn't help but smile at: "I put the track up like a frozen pizza. Beats so crazy it might blow

Last week, Rafael Nadal said that he ranked claiming gold at the Olympic Games as a bigger achievement than winning a Grand Slam.

Tramlines has no problem with his opinion, because it is just that - his opinion.

If that is how Nadal truly feels then why should he not express it honestly? It is also an understandable viewpoint. The thought of winning a gold medal at the Olympic Games and hearing your country's anthem played is one of those 'every boy's dream' clichés that actually rings true.

However, when we tennis fans think of Nadal, we don't think of the Olympics. We remember the dominance

Kiki Bertens

Dutch qualifier Kiki Bertens went into the WTA Fes tournament without having won a single match on the Tour - but now incredibly has a first title to her name.

In what must go down as surely the worst WTA field ever assembled, Bertens beat Laura Pous Tio, who was also a surprise finalist with just one WTA victory before this week.

What ensued in the final was an encounter so nervy it was frankly agonising to watch.

Five breaks of serve were traded in an opening set devoid of quality, before Pous Tio appeared to run out of steam dramatically in the second as she was emphatically bagelled.

To

Trampolines: What tennis has been waiting forThe world number one is not a happy man.

Nope, not because he was hammered by Rafael Nadal in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters. Novak Djokovic was very chilled about that.

But the Serb seemed royally ticked off by the fact that he will be forced to play on blue clay when the world's best head to the Madrid Masters in May. Djokovic seems mostly annoyed that the decision was taken by the tennis authorities in conjunction with the sponsors, and without getting a rubber stamp from the stars themselves.

"There is a certain rule within the ATP that the president is able to make decisions by

Indian Wells Masters champion 2010 Ivan Ljubicic

"It's the end of something beautiful for me." — Ivan Ljubicic

To say that Ivan Ljubicic, who retired earlier this week, was one of the most limited players to ever reach number three in the world might initially sound like a disparaging remark.

In reality though, it is actually a compliment; because despite not having the raw, natural ability that some of the game's true greats were blessed with, the likeable Croat managed to reach the game's top tier through sheer application and hard work.

He might have been a bit too reliant on his serve and he didn't quite have the reaction speed or

Serena Williams has never been one for hyperbole or overreaction, so when the self-effacing and bashful American declared that she was so good it was "scary" it really means something. Or so Tramlines likes to think.

On Saturday, the fifth-seeded Williams defeated number two seed Sam Stosur in just 58 minutes, 6-1 6-1, compiling an almost unheard of +14 differential on clay against one of the best clay courters on the WTA Tour -  29 winners to 15 errors.

If that wasn't 'scary' enough, the match time of the final against Lucie Safarova was the same as her semi-final, 58 minutes, but her

Miami Masters final

We are into the fifth year of the revamped Masters 1000 series and the latest final in Miami between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray underlined why these showpieces really should be a best of five set affair as they were before 2008.

Etiene de Villiers, former Executive Chairman of the ATP Tour, pushed to have the Masters finals reduced due to player tiredness.

That appears a hollow excuse and has taken credibility away from the events.

If de Villiers really wanted to make a difference, he should have pushed harder to get the tennis season reduced to 10 months which would allow players to get

Venus Williams played 11 matches of tennis in all of 2011, has had six months out as she comes to terms with an illness, and is now in the last 16 of a major event. How?

Her comeback run in Miami, during which she has dumped out the Wimbledon champion and world number three Petra Kvitova, has been described in some quarters as 'inspirational'.

It's certainly a remarkable story. Venus, now 31 years old, had been struggling with injury and fatigue for some time.

After a schedule in 2011 that Tramlines would generously term 'limited', Venus turned up for the US Open, won her first-round match