The love affair between jewelry and tennis began in 1987 at the U.S. Open.  Chris Evert stopped play to pick up something shiny she dropped on the court.  When asked later what it was, she said: “That was my tennis bracelet.” All over America, thousands of diamond line bracelets, a formerly sleepy jewelry classic, became red-hot tennis bracelets.  The first must-have jewelry piece since the engagement ring was born.  Jewelry was smitten.

At the 2002 U.S. Open, Serena Williams  won wearing nine carats of diamonds on her left wrist: a $29,000 tennis bracelet given to her by Harry Winston. Was it the luck of the diamonds?

The latest chapter in the love story: Maria Sharapova and Tiffany & Co.  This week at the U.S. Open, Sharapova is wearing a pair of lanky sterling and diamond Stria earrings designed by starchitect Frank Gehry.  Unlike Serena’s bracelet, these earrings are within reach even if you aren’t a number-one seed, retailing for just $850.

So now that Sharapova has her lucky diamonds covered, maybe that shaky serve will improve?