The red carpet rolled out at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Smoke blew from the cannons. Then Maria Sharapova emerged in a mid-length black dress, its collar reflecting light back into the tennis stratosphere,

Maria Sharapova, recently inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, received her US Open ring at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Serena Williams, her former rival, introduced her at the Hall of Fame ceremony.

Williams' surprise appearance to induct Sharapova was "months in the making" and required the code name of another female icon.