◘Meteorological summer is about to end and there was no better way to close it than by celebrating the induction of one of tennis' all-time great players. Sports writer Bill Koch was there.

Somewhere along the way, through more than a decade of chasing the same goals and dreams, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams found the essence of one another. They met in a different role on what was a historic Saturday evening at the Newport Casino, two former women’s tennis greats who share a bond few others could comprehend. One former rival inducted the other into the International Tennis Hall of Fame , with Williams presenting Sharapova with the ultimate career honor in a surprise appearance just steps off Bellevue Avenue on Aug. 23.

◘While tennis closed one chapter of its year, Providen

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