Melbourne, Australia, 7 December 2012 | tennis.com.au

The British Royal Family loves the tennis. We’ve seen the Queen at Wimbledon, and Prince William visit the Australian Open. Wife Kate is regularly spotted at the All England Club, while her sister Pippa is a tennis globetrotter, attending Wimbledon, the US Open, the ATP World Tour Finals, and anywhere else she can fit in.

With Kate and William recently announcing that they are expecting their first child, we thought we’d take a look at the children of the tennis world. Babies and toddlers are increasingly a visible force on the men’s and women’s tours, particularly in the social media age of YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

This Friday, we take a look at 10 of the cutest.

10. Lindsay Davenport – Jagger
The American champion became one of the rare playing mums when in 2007 she returned to the tour after giving birth to her first son Jagger. He stopped in for a little visit to watch her play at the WTA event in Bali, her first competitive tournament in singles since he joined the world.

9. Pete Sampras – Christian and Ryan
Sampras was joined by son Ryan and wife Bridgette Wilson as Sampras was recognised as a tournament honouree at the Los Angeles ATP event. Sampras and Wilson also have an older son Ryan, pictured below as a toddler in 2003.

8. Gilles Simon – Timothée
Simon’s son Timothée, born four weeks before his due date while the Frenchman competed at the US Open in 2010, was on hand to celebrate with his Dad when Simon won the ATP event in Hamburg in 2011. Clearly besotted with his boy, proud dad Simon gave him a high-five and a kiss.

7. Alicia Molik – Yannik
The popular Australian retired for the second time in 2011 to focus on family life, and during Australian Open 2012, gave birth to son Yannik. Alicia, husband Tim and baby Yannik recently stepped out for an appearance in Perth, where Molik was on hand at the opening of the Perth Arena, the new venue that will play host to the Hopman Cup in 2013.

6. Marcos Baghdatis – Zahara
This gorgeous little baby belongs to sunny Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis and Karolina Sprem, a former WTA player who peaked at world No.17 back in 2004. With the tennis genes between this pair, who recently married in Croatia, we could see Zahara on tennis courts around the world herself one day down the track …

5. Steffi Graff and Andre Agassi – Jaden Gil and Jaz Elle
These cute little kids are the product of the most famous couple in tennis history. Yet Jaz Elle (left) and Jaden Gil are not being pushed into the sport, with their parents instead letting them choose the path they desire. But it seems the kids have a bit of a taste for tennis, seen watching a match in Las Vegas. A child actor also plays Jaden Gil in the Canon commercial below …

4. Bob Bryan – Micaela
Creating a fuss in the locker room and in player cafes the world over of late has been Micaela Bryan, daughter of Bob Bryan, one half of the world’s top doubles team. The musical Micaela – her dad and uncle are in a band, after all – also has a Twitter account where you can keep up with all her travels, meet-and-greets, and general shenanigans. She’d surpassed 7,300 followers at the time of writing …

3. Lleyton Hewitt – Cruz
Lleyton and Bec Hewitt’s three gorgeous children have regularly been spotted on the practice court with their Dad, but Cruz got a little shy when thrust onto the big stage of Rod Laver Arena during the Rally for Relief charity exhibitions prior to Australian Open 2011. The Hewitt’s middle child, despite not being in the mood for a hit, still managed to steal the show and a magnet to the top female players on court.

2. Kim Clijsters – Jada
Little Jada become an instant hit when she skipped around Arthur Ashe Stadium following Clijsters’ 2009 US Open win, just her third tournament into her comeback after becoming a mum. And she still seems very comfortable in front of the camera, as this fan video attests.

1. Roger Federer – Charlene Riva and Myla Rose
Taking the top gong in the cuteness stakes this Friday are Roger Federer’s twins, who simply loved coming out – in matching outfits no less – to support their Dad during his latest Grand Slam triumph at Wimbledon 2012. They threatened to upstage him during the trophy presentation, with nearly as many fans watching their excited expressions and applause as Federer’s hoisting of his seventh Wimbledon trophy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgd2ijisy_E