Tennis

Forget Roger Federer ... the real show at the U.S. Open was in the stands -- where Joe Jonas was slammin' beers and making out with his smokin' hot fiancee, Sophie Turner!

TENNIS TURN UP!!!

Joe and Sophie were on a double date at Arthur Ashe stadium in NYC with his bro Kevin Jonas and his wife Danielle -- when they decided to screw with the photogs by putting on a show in their VIP box.

There was some fake tongue action -- and very REAL beer drinking ... including a moment where the Jo-Bros linked arms, chugged and then busted out the FLOSS dance!

Earlier in the weekend, Sophie stuffed a seat pad under her shirt to goose some reporters into going with a pregnancy story. It didn't work, as most pregnant women don't have square baby bumps.

Good times ...

Ex-pro tennis player Anne White says she knows how Serena Williams feels about the ban on her catsuit at the French Open .. because she went through the exact same thing back in the '80s.

White famously wore a body suit to play in Wimbledon in 1985 -- but was told during the tournament, the suit violated the dress code and she needed to change it or she couldn't continue.

She changed her outfit -- and lost the following match.

White tells TMZ Sports she felt the whole thing was sexist -- "It's kinda crazy that women aren't allowed to wear what they want to work. It's a shame."

Like Serena, Anne says her catsuit was more about function than fashion -- explaining her outfit was intended to keep her warm in the cold weather.

FYI, Serena's catsuit was custom-designed to increase blood circulation in the wake of health issues caused by blot clots.

White tells us ... she's a HUGE fan of Serena and believes tennis officials should change the rules to allow women like Williams to essentially wear whatever they want, especially if there's a legit reason.

Serena Williams has an unlikely ally in her catsuit controversy -- the former president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

French Open officials recently told Williams she could not wear a custom-made Nike catsuit during the tournament -- despite the fact it was designed to increase blood circulation in the wake of her health issues surrounding blood clots.

Well, the issue isn't sitting well with the Ahmadinejad -- who took a page from Donald Trump's playbook and lashed out at the French Open on his official Twitter account.

"Why is the #FrenchOpen disrespecting @serenawilliams? Unfortunately some people in all Countries including my Country, haven't realized the true meaning of freedom."

Less is more when it comes to training gear for Novak Djokovic ... 'cause dude went for a run on the beach in Spain wearing sneakers and a Speedo.

Djok was hangin' out in Marbella when he decided to get in a workout while taking in some sun -- so, he hit one of the public beach gym places and started grindin'!

... in his budgy smuggler.

He ran. He did pull-ups. Leg press. All while leaving little to the imagination.

Look, he's from Europe (Serbia) and was in Europe (Spain) ... and everyone knows they love their man panties across the pond.

Plus, Novak's got a killer bod.

Of course, Novak is now in New York for the U.S. Open ... so, it's all business from here on out.

Roger Federer vs. Serena Williams. Who wins?

We got Fed outside UNIQLO in NYC on Wednesday and asked him straight-up.

Obviously, Federer told us he's betting on himself ... but it begs the question, could Serena -- the greatest female tennis player of all time -- REALLY compete with Fed in a serious tennis showdown?

Remember ... Serena's been engulfed in this Battle of the Sexes subject for years. John McEnroe says he was once offered $1 MILLION by Donald Trump to do battle with her. Billie Jean King also threw herself into the conversation by saying there's no way in hell Serena would win a match with a man.

As for Serena's side on all of this ... her most recent comment on the issue came in the form of a tweet to McEnroe after he said "she'd be like 700 in the world" on the men's circuit.

"Dear John, I adore and respect you but please please keep me out of your statements that are not factually based," Serena said.

"I've never played anyone ranked 'there' nor do I have time. Respect me and my privacy as I'm trying to have a baby. Good day sir."

As for UNIQLO and why Fed was there rehashing the whole issue among so many wild fans -- the Swiss star just broke up with Nike to ink a $300 MILLION deal with the Japanese apparel giant -- and he was there to promote his new gear with the people.

A dance battle broke out on the streets of Queens on Tuesday -- Good Vs. Evil -- and the winner gets Serena Williams!!

There was definitely a Luke Skywalker-type vibe with Serena -- a bunch of "dark side" lookin' dancers tried to dance-pull Serena down some stairs ... while some "light side" dancers resisted and yanked her the other direction.

So ... what the hell was going on?!!?

BEATS, BABY!

It was all for a Beats By Dre headphones commercial -- but since the production didn't bump the music out loud, we don't really know what song they're all dancing to.

Still, everyone slaaaaaayed ... and Serena got paaaaaaaaid.

Well, this is interesting ...

Serena Williams -- who owns a minority stake in the Miami Dolphins -- says she's convinced, if a team hired Colin Kaepernick, he would win the Super Bowl.

However, she's also convinced no one will ever hire Colin Kaepernick.

It's all part of her new interview with Time -- where Serena says she supports the rights of NFL players to protest during the national anthem.

When asked specifically about Colin -- whom she's only met twice -- Williams said she doubts an NFL team will hire him, especially after he filed his collusion grievance against the league.

But, as the Time article states, "She’s convinced Kaepernick would win a Super Bowl."

"He’d have so much to prove," Williams said ... "I would. I can’t imagine he would be any different. 'Man, I’m about to show out. Y’all gonna see stuff you’ve never seen before.'"

Interesting, since some think the Dolphins could use a QB right now ...

Williams also says she doesn't believe Kaepernick is a broken man because of the alleged blackballing -- she thinks it's the opposite because he's focusing on raising money for nonprofits.

"Colin is happy with what he’s doing ... Some people are different. He’s just different."

Serena Williams says she was in a "funk" during her historic loss at the Silicon Valley Classic last week -- all because postpartum emotions made her feel like a bad mom.

Williams suffered the worst loss of her pro career to 43rd ranked Johanna Konta -- going down in straight sets ... 6-1, 6-0.

Now, Serena -- who gave birth to her daughter back in August 2017 -- says postpartum emotions definitely played a role.

"Last week was not easy for me. Not only was I accepting some tough personal stuff, but I just was in a funk. Mostly, I felt like I was not a good mom," Williams wrote on Instagram.

"I read several articles that said postpartum emotions can last up to 3 years if not dealt with. I like communication best. Talking things through with my mom, my sisters, my friends let me know that my feelings are totally normal. It’s totally normal to feel like I’m not doing enough for my baby."

She added ... "Although I have been with her every day of her life, I’m not around as much as I would like to be. Most of you moms deal with the same thing. Whether stay-at-home or working, finding that balance with kids is a true art. You are the true heroes."

The gang member who murdered Yetunde Price -- the half-sister of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams -- is now a free man after serving 12 years in prison.

Robert Maxfield was convicted of killing Price in 2003 in a drive-by shooting in Compton, and was sentenced to 15 years behind bars for voluntary manslaughter in 2006. According to Daily Mail, he's been released on parole 3 years early for good behavior.

The Williams sisters were close to their older sister, who served as their part-time personal assistant as their careers were taking off.

Yetunde was in the passenger seat of her boyfriend's car when she was hit by a bullet from Maxfield, and she died instantly. Cops said her BF was the intended target.

Common is strongly siding with his ex-GF, Serena Williams -- telling TMZ Sports someone is trying to "take her down" by drug testing her more than usual ... and it's all because she's a black woman.

Hours before we spoke with Common, Serena went off about being drug tested more than any other female tennis player ... and accused officials of "discrimination."

Common clearly agrees -- saying, "As a black woman, do you think she's getting discriminated against? YES."

"If they're testing her more than anyone else, it's a reason for that. And there's conscious and subconscious and I would say conscious is the fact that she's a black woman and they're looking for some reason to be able to take her down and discredit her ... but she's the queen!"

Genie Bouchard injured her groin last weekend ... but she clearly didn't hurt her butt -- 'cause the tennis star was shakin' it all over the place in Morocco on Wednesday!!

The 24-year-old cruised over to Africa after an injury cut her run in the Swiss Open short ... and she looked no worse for wear gettin' some rehab work in by her luxury hotel's pool.

In a barely-there neon green and hot pink bikini ... Genie made sure to get a couple sets of champagne sippin' and booty poppin' to get right.

Yeah ... we think she'll make a full recovery.

BTW -- Genie's getting pretty good at this whole bikini thing ... she slayed the SI Swimsuit shoot this year.

Eat your heart out, Super Bowl bet guy.

Serena Williams is furious at the "random" drug tests in her sport -- claiming she's been singled out by officials and tested more than any other player ... and she's saying it's "discrimination."

The 36-year-old tennis superstar -- who just came in 2nd at Wimbledon -- went off Tuesday night on Twitter as she got ready to take another drug test.

"And it’s that time of the day to get 'randomly' drug tested and only test Serena. Out of all the players it’s been proven I’m the one getting tested the most."

"Discrimination? I think so. At least I’ll be keeping the sport clean #StayPositive."

She added, "But I’m ready to do whatever it takes to have a clean sport so bring it on. I’m excited."

Maria Sharapova's professional season might be winding down, but her boyfriend is kicking off ass-eatin' season ... in a big way!

The Russian tennis star was lounging in a bikini Sunday in Positano, alongside her millionaire bf, Alexander Gilkes, who decided to order lunch OFF-menu. For some reason, Alex got a face full of Maria's butt.

He was also pretty handsy with the booty -- so, there's little question to what he sees in Maria. Check out the pics, though ... she was stuck on her phone the whole time he was going to work back there.

Caroline Wozniacki's not sweating missing out on one of the biggest days in women's tennis ... she's staying cool in the pool instead.

The tennis star and her NBA fiance, David Lee, are still vacationing in Italy -- now they're in Portofino -- and were spotted Saturday getting wet and enjoying some delicious-looking drinks.

As we reported ... the couple jetted over to Italy early this week after Caroline got bounced from Wimbledon in the second round.

9:33 AM PT -- Serena was defeated by Angelique Kerber, 6-3 6-3, who won her first career Wimbledon title and third major. Serena was interviewed after the match, saying she was disappointed she couldn't get the win for all the moms out there ... but thanked everyone for their support and said she was happy to be back.

Meghan Markle has friends in high places, and not just at the Palace ... because she showed up to watch her good friend Serena Williams try to make some history.

Meghan brought sister-in-law Kate Middleton along for the ride to sit in the peanut gallery at Wimbledon, to watch Serena attempt a super-human feat ... bouncing back after a difficult post-pregnancy to tie the record for Grand Slam wins.

Caroline Wozniacki seems devastated after losing at Wimbledon, doesn't she?!

Just days after the tennis superstar got bounced from the tourney, she and her NBA fiance, David Lee, jetted over to Capri, Italy ... where they're yachting, relaxing and taking bikini pics.

Yeah, she's clearly heartbroken.

Also, Wednesday is Caroline's 28th birthday -- and, judging from her vacation pics, she seems WAY happier being in sunny Capri than cloudy England.

Plus, this way, Caro gets to show off her insane physique -- which she did in the 2016 and 2017 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition (awesome, btw).

As for the whole Wimbledon thing, Wozniacki lost in the 2nd round to Russian star Ekaterina Makarova ... after a swarm of flying ants invaded the court.

No flying ants in Capri ... just sayin'.