Serena defeats Venus in final

Serena Williams said she didn’t arrive at the Sony Ericsson Championships expecting to win.

Plenty of other people did that for her.

Williams bested big sister Venus again Sunday, winning, 6-2, 7-6 (4), in the season-ending tournament at Doha, Qatar, for her third victory of the season. Williams also won Wimbledon and the Australian Open, and clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking earlier in the week.

“It feels great,” said Serena, who also won the WTA Tour’s season-ending event in 2001. “I totally didn’t expect to come here and win.”

Serena broke twice in the first set and lost only seven points on serve. She looked sharper than Venus in every facet of a match that featured few long rallies and only a glimmer of the spectacular tennis the two have provided in some of their previous meetings.

Serena secured the match with a crosscourt forehand winner and celebrated with a simple fist pump before hugging her sister at the net. Serena leads their head-to-head record, 13-10.

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Jurgen Melzer defeated top-seeded Marin Cilic, 6-4, 6-3, to win the Bank Austria Tennis Trophy at Vienna, the second ATP title of his career.

GOLF

Fisher beats Kim in final

Ross Fisher beat Anthony Kim, 4 and 3, to win the 36-hole World Match Play Championship final at Casares, Spain.

Fisher eagled the 22nd hole and birdied the next to take a 3-up lead at the Finca Cortesin golf course. Kim won the next hole before missing short putts at the next two, then squandering several chances to win holes down the stretch.

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John Cook won the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championships at Sonoma, Calif., by five strokes for his second Champions Tour title in three weeks, and Loren Roberts held on to win the season points title.

Cook, also the Administaff Small Business Classic winner two weeks ago in Texas, closed with a three-under-par 69 to finish at 22-under 266 at Sonoma Golf Club.

He broke the tournament record of 268 shared by Jim Thorpe and Andy Bean.

Roberts had a 66 to tie for sixth at 13-under 275 and win the points title and $1-million annuity for the second time in three years.

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Ian Poulter shot a final-round 72 to win the Singapore Open by a shot over Liang Wenchong.

The 33-year-old Englishman, who led from the opening round, finished at 10-under 274.

MARATHON

American wins in NYC

Meb Keflezighi became the first American man to win the New York City Marathon since 1982.

Derartu Tulu of Ethiopia won the women’s race.

Keflezighi, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist and a UCLA alumnus, won in 2 hours 9 minutes 15 seconds.

Born in Eritrea, the 34-year-old runner became a U.S. citizen in 1998.

ETC.

Player in critical condition

Jackson Allan, a sophomore running back-linebacker at Pasadena Poly High, was listed in critical but stable condition at Harbor UCLA Medical Center after undergoing surgery to relieve pressure on his brain resulting from a head injury he suffered Saturday during a game against Palos Verdes Peninsula Chadwick.

-- Ben Bolch

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Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert saddled four consecutive winners at Santa Anita’s Oak Tree meeting, including Crisis Of Spirit in the $63,672 Anoakia Stakes.

Baffert’s consecutive victory streak began in the first race with Freedom Star, followed by Total Bull, Crisis Of Spirit and You Can Dream.