"Are you trying to be down on women's tennis?": When Venus Williams shut down questions about her dominant win over Dinara Safina being 'embarrassing'

Venus Williams once took exception to the questions asked after she beat Dinara Safina at the 2009 Wimbledon Championships. The American was quick to shut down any remarks that seemed to be denigrating women's tennis.

That year, Williams entered the grasscourt Major as the third seed and two-time defending champion. The American continued to impress at SW19, beating the likes of Stefanie Vogele, Ana Ivanovic, and Agnieszka Radwanska to meet No. 1 seed Dinara Safina in the semifinals.

Although the encounter was expected to be tightly contested with top seeds facing off, Venus Williams crushed Safina to claim a 6-1, 6-0 victory, wrapping up the match in just 51 minutes. With her win, she advanced to her eighth Wimbledon final and set up a blockbuster title clash with her sister Serena Williams.

During her post-match press conference, Venus Williams was asked whether it was "embarrassing" for women's tennis that she had convincingly "destroyed" the then-World No. 1 Dinara Safina during the match. However, the American called out the reporter for negatively framing the question, asking whether the intention was to disparage women's tennis.

"Why do you put it like that?" she said. "Are you trying to be down on women's tennis?"

Williams made it clear that she had immense respect for Safina and urged the reporters to display the same regard for the Russian.

"Okay, because I don't deal with down at all," she added. "I'm just making sure you're not trying to be down, because I respect Dinara Safina immensely, and I think you should, too."

Williams also emphasized that women's tennis was "fantastic" after being asked whether it was a good look for the sport if the top-ranked player only managed to win one game.

"I think women's tennis is fantastic," she said.

While Venus Williams recorded a clinical victory over Dinara Safina, Serena Williams advanced to the final after beating Elena Dementieva 6-7(4), 7-5, 8-6 in a tough two-hour and 49-minute battle.

"I don't necessarily want Serena Williams to lose, but for sure I want me to win" - Venus Williams on facing her sister in Wimbledon 2009 final

Serena Williams defeated Venus Williams in the 2009 Wimbledon final - Source: Getty

During the same press conference, Venus Williams opened up about facing Serena Williams in the 2009 Wimbledon Championships final, disclosing that she was happy for her sister even though she wanted to beat her in the title clash.

"It is different because I'm happy for her to be in the final, but I have to face her and defeat her. I don't necessarily want her to lose, but for sure I want me to win," Venus Williams said.

Nevertheless, Venus explained that she would rather face Serena than any other player since it was a dream come true for their family.

"No, no. I definitely wanted her to win today. It's like if she didn't win or if I didn't win then the dream doesn't come true that we're both playing in the final. So I definitely want to play against her, because the dream has come true for both of us and for our family, too," she added.

Serena Williams eventually triumphed in the final, beating her sister 7-6(3), 6-2 to clinch her third Wimbledon title and 11th Grand Slam title overall.