Serena Williams defeated her sister Venus 6-4 6-3 to win the inaugural BNP Paribas Showdown for the Billie Jean King Cup at Madison Square Garden on Monday night.

The exhibition event pitted three of the reigning grand slam champions and the world's top-ranked player against one another in a one-night only, single-elimination event, which celebrated tennis legend King.

It also showcased venerable MSG, a venue with rich tennis history, and doled out a first prize of $400,000.

"Venus and I are so excited to play at MSG," said Serena, who was handed the winner's cup by King after the match.

"It was really intense. I've watched so many matches at MSG. I'm really excited to be here."

French Open champion Ana Ivanovic, Wimbledon winner Venus and US Open champion Serena were joined by world number one Jelena Jankovic, who was a replacement for the injured Maria Sharapova.

Serena defeated Ivanovic, while Venus ousted Jankovic in one-set semi-finals to set the stage for their 20th career meeting in the championship round. Venus had won 10 of the match-ups prior to Serena's exhibition victory last night.

The highlight of the night may have come prior to the championship match, when former president Bill Clinton spoke to the crowd in honour of King, who followed with an inspirational speech of her own.

King and BNP Paribas presented a USD50,000 check to the Dream Vaccines Foundation, which raises money for AIDS and malaria victims in Africa.

In the final, Serena was dominant, nailing her passing shots with incredible accuracy. The sisters battled through three deuces with the match tied at 4-4 in the first set before Serena pulled away.

Serena took a 5-1 lead in the second, when it seemed as if her win was nothing more than a formality. But Venus fought back to win the next two games before succumbing to defeat.

"Yeah, I tried," Venus said when asked about her attempt to force a third set.

"Serena was just too good tonight."

It was the second straight year MSG hosted an exhibition event, with Pete Sampras and Roger Federer battling to the delight of the crowd one year ago.

Venus, for her part, hopes it is not the last tennis showcase at the arena.

"Wow, what an event, wish I could have won," she said. "There's always next year - first of many."