Serena receives apology from Tarpischev

Singapore (SportsNetwork.com) - Serena Williams received a written apology from Russian tennis president Shamil Tarpischev, who made offensive comments last week when he called the American great and her older sister Venus the "Williams brothers."

Serena said "he has reached out to apologize to both myself and my sister."

Tarpischev was suspended from WTA involvement for a year and fined $25,000 for the comments he made on a Russian television show, where he also said the sisters were "scary" to look at.

The WTA released a statement saying "his derogatory remarks deserve to be condemned."

The world No. 1 and U.S. Open champion Serena is competing at the prestigious eight-player WTA Finals in Singapore this week.