Venus shines brightest at season's end

DOHA: Venus Williams beat Russia's Vera Zvonareva 6-7, 6-0, 6-2 on Sunday to win the WTA Championships and complete an undefeated week at the season-ending event.

It was the first time the American had won the event after she reached the semifinals in her previous two appearances. She retired injured on the second occasion, in 2002, and qualified but failed to play because of injury on five other occasions.

"It's fantastic to end the season this way," Williams told reporters. "I've never really had the opportunity to play this tournament very often so it's really awesome to have that opportunity and to play well."