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Back designs have had a special place in women’s tennis fashion, as sports apparel companies strive to create outfits that look striking both from the back and from the front. The sky’s the limit when it comes to the variety of styles and in this overview Marija Zivlak of Women’s Tennis Blog will show you those that marked 2015.

Half-moon keyhole cutouts at center back are a simple, yet highly visually appealing element popular among many top brands. Here we can see the adidas by Stella McCartney representatives Flavia Pennetta and Garbiñe Muguruza rocking it at the US Open, Serena Williams’ day and night Nike dresses in New York featured a similar back detail, as well as Lacoste’s collection for Roland Garros, as seen here on Alizé Cornet. The adidas Winter Stella McCartney Tank also includes a nice yellow zipper entry at racerback, while Williams’ Nike Fall Premier Dress has a bonded zipper.

Players usually opt for white dresses solely at Wimbledon, but Sloane Stephens occasionally wore them even during other parts of the season, using the power of outstanding back designs to make her plain white pieces stand out.

The most extraordinary feature of Agnieszka Radwanska’s lace dresses was this mesh lace accent at back. Lotto took the risk by incorporating lingerie elements to a great extent and it turned out to be a big hit.

Stella McCartney and adidas made fashion statements with these large egg-shaped back cutouts Caroline Wozniacki and Andrea Petkovic displayed early in the season.

Criss-cross straps are a common type of back design. Ana Ivanovic’s adidas Fall All Premium Dress for Wimbledon has spaghetti straps at two levels, Agnieszka Radwanska’s Lotto Lux Metallic Dress also has them, while the neat black straps of Jelena Jankovic’s Fila Fall Platinum Cami Tank have an added functionality of being adjustable. Venus Williams’ EleVen Kaleidoscope Tie It Up Tank has a surprise detail, a lightly sewn tie at the meeting point of the straps.

Complimenting her chic and feminine colorful prints, Venus Williams created a number of back designs with triangular, circular or square keyhole cutouts highlighted by a variety of elements in them.

Serena Williams sported many bold back designs in 2015, the most fascinating one being that of her Australian Open dress. Thin racerback or skinny straps that meet at upper back were a common feature in Williams’ tops, while in Melbourne the American went for the provocative backless tunic.

Maria Sharapova’s Nike French Open dress had a nice T-back design, while Caroline Wozniacki’s adidas Fall Stella McCartney Dress for Wimbledon used somewhat similar straps, just in reverse position.

In their popular spring/summer clothes, adidas featured these sheer mesh inserts on back, accentuated by the contrasting bra and shorts underneath, while Alizé Lim and her clothing sponsor Le Coq Sportif stood out with see-through backs of these unique jumpsuits.

Kristina Mladenovic and Karolina Pliskova played two more thrilling sets on the International Premier Tennis League’s first night in Singapore, and while each won a battle, Mladenovic and her OBI UAE Royals won the war, defeating Pliskova’s OUE Singapore Slammers, 27-23.

The Frenchwoman had narrowly to her good friend and rival in their last IPTL encounter, but turned the tables on the Czech on Friday, winning their women’s singles set 6-5. Though Pliskova, partnering Dustin Brown, won a fourth straight set of mixed doubles – defating Mladenovic and Daniel Nestor, 6-3 – the Royals ultimately won by a mere four games, sliding just behind the Slammers for third place in the overall standings.

Earlier in the night, the Legendari Japan Warriors won their second match of the season, defeating the Philippine Mavericks, 29-15. Kurumi Nara stepped in to defeat Jarmila Gajdosova in women’s singles, 6-1, while Mirjana Lucic-Baroni paired Leander Paes to defeat Gajdosova and Edouard Roger-Vasslin, 6-2.

Check out some of the best tweets of the night:

Good morning from #Singapore ! Last stop of the #IPTL2 #lovetheviewofmyroom pic.twitter.com/NX9mc0BDSk

— Kristina Mladenovic (@KikiMladenovic) December 18, 2015

Hello Singapore!never been here but already love the view from my hotel room! Last leg of @iptl @PHMavericks pic.twitter.com/4jxSEMnkgy

— Jarmila Gajdosova (@tennis_jarkag) December 17, 2015

Another super forehand from @KaPliskova ,Surely #Slammers are proud of Kaja! #Amazing #teamkaja pic.twitter.com/ymQhkn9VOj

— KaPliskova Fans (@kpfanclub_CN) December 18, 2015

4 mixed double together, and 4 wins in a row for @KaPliskova & @DreddyTennis That's super!!??? pic.twitter.com/r2fjWo1L6t

— KaPliskova Fans (@kpfanclub_CN) December 18, 2015

Meet the Grrrrr-Royals! #Tenfie #BreakTheCode @OfficialGoran @rogerfederer @KikiMladenovic @cilic_marin @JohnLaffnie pic.twitter.com/4t9SlDsLdA

— IPTL (@iptl) December 18, 2015

It wasn’t until her eighth appearance at the US Open that 2008 Roland Garros champion reached the quarterfinals, but it was nonetheless a monumentous occassion for the former No.1.

“I have been here in fourth round quite a few times,” she said after defeating Tsvetana Pironkova to make the last eight in 2012, adding, “to make that step and reach quarterfinal, and also the first time since ’08 which I’m very thrilled about.”

Indeed, it was the Serb’s best finish at a major tournament since winning her maiden Grand Slam title in Paris; leading up to that fateful run at the French Open, she had reached the semifinals or better at three of her last four majors – the US Open being the only outlier.

A charasmatic character on the court, Ivanovic has a more reserved personality, and admitted to once feeling overwhelmed in the big city of New York.

“It was very energy‑consuming because it’s big. I did not enjoy that part. Lots of people come out. You know, I really like to have my own privacy and be quiet, you know, and it was big and open.

“Now I embrace it more. I enjoy it. That has been the biggest change.”

From her initial struggles there, the US Open quickly became her most consistent major, the only one where she has reached the second week for four straight years.

“I started to really enjoy and change my attitude towards it. Now I really embrace the city. I love it. The possibilities you have off the court, museums, shows, shopping, restaurants.

“I mean, you can never be bored in New York.”

Her chances of greater successes in Flushing Meadows have been blighted by difficult draws; in her last two appearances, she has lost to a rising Karolina Pliskova and a resurgent Dominika Cibulkova. The loss to Cibulkova was particularly distressing to Ivanovic, who had just pushed World No.1 Serena Williams to three tough sets at the Western & Southern Open.

“I felt like I did a lot of hard work over last few months. Over last week, you know, I had great preparation, lots of good training and everything.

“It was just unfortunate that, you know, we came up against one another so early in a tournament.”

The Serb rebounded in the fall, reaching the semifinals of the China Open and narrowly missing out on a chance to return to the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

Players will be in for a tough summer schedule that will include the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, but Ivanovic hardly struggled to adjust during the last Olympic summer. With that lone quarterfinal appearance coming on the heels of the London Games, the Serb may be poised to pounce at the Open, pushed onward by its voracious crowd.

“I try to play along and try to be part of [the crowd], as well. Because I think that’s what fans want to see. They want to see players interact and be part of it.”

Can Ivanovic become a part of history with a 2016 US Open title?

Arina Rodionova set to play a match on her wedding day: Rodionova is caught in a scheduling tizzy. She’s into the semifinals of the Australian Open wildcard playoff on Saturday. That also happens to be the same day as her wedding. Organizers have moved the match to start at 9am. Good luck!

Serena ready for another Grand Slam run: The World No.1 says the Grand Slam – nay, Golden Slam – is on her mind as she readies for 2016.

Sania Mirza hoping for less controversy at the Olympics: After a divisive Olympic selection bid last time around in London, Mirza his hoping for smoother waters in Rio this summer.

Belinda Bencic partnership still in flux: On the heels of Martina Hingis confirming her mixed doubles pairing with Roger Federer at the Olympics, Bencic’s potential pairing with Wawrinka is still in up in the air.

Meanwhile, here’s Bencic with her IPTL Singapore Slammers. Looks like a fun time is being had by all.

Singapore calling! @andy_murray @Charlymoya @BelindaBencic @marcelomelo83 @NickKyrgios @KaPliskova #Tenfie pic.twitter.com/mmI9cMYNbP

— IPTL (@iptl) December 17, 2015

Petra Kvitova announces her engagement: The two-time Wimbledon champion announced on Thursday that she’s engaged to Czech hockey player Radek Meidl. Congrats!

Vincanity: Steve Tignor for Tennis.com on his second-best match of the year: Roberta Vinci’s shocker over Serena Williams at the US Open.

Kristina Mladenovic living her dream: The Frenchwoman tells Sport360.com that playing IPTL alongside Roger Federer is blowing her mind.

The Best Interviews: We’ve created a playlist on Soundcloud featuring the best player interviews so far from the WTA Insider Podcast. It’s a great jumping off point if you haven’t heard the podcast yet.

Strong IS beautiful: We see you, Dominika Cibulkova.

#strongisbeautiful @Cibulkova @wta @DomiCollection pic.twitter.com/NKqhRLyt4h

— Dominika Cibulkova (@Cibulkova) December 17, 2015

Greatness has been found: Nifty Nike collection honoring Serena here:

Strong. Powerful. Beautiful. @nikelab honors @serenawilliams with the Greatness Collection: https://t.co/mUskPo4YEH pic.twitter.com/pcMnc7Mg8O

— NikeCourt (@Nikecourt) December 16, 2015