"Did you seriously ask me that?" - When Venus Williams was furious over property-damage accusation placed on her and sister Serena Williams

Venus Williams and Serena Williams have had their fair share of run-ins with the media due to rumors, unconfirmed reports, and several other reasons. In 2007, however, Venus was left furious with one reporter at Wimbledon after they asked about an unconfirmed report of property damage by the Williams sisters.

In the third round of the 2007 Wimbledon Championships, Venus got the better of Japanese player Akiko Morigami 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. Earlier in the day, reports were released about Serena and Venus cutting up Wimbledon towels in the locker room. During her post-match press conference after the win over Morgiami, Venus was confronted with the question:

"It was reported this morning that you and Serena were cutting up towels in the locker room. Can I ask what you were doing?"

The American tennis star was furious in her response, stating:

"Did you seriously ask me that?"

Unperturbed, the reporter responded:

"Yes"

However, Venus felt no need to answer such a question and said:

"I'm going to act like you didn't."

The reporter claimed that they 'were just interested' to know what had happened but the moderator asked reporters to move on from that question.

During the same press conference, Venus was asked several questions about her next opponent, Maria Sharapova. The American defeated her in the fourth round and eventually won the 2007 Wimbledon Championships by getting the better of Marion Bartoli in straight sets in the final.

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Serena Williams slams well-known media house for printing Venus Williams' image instead of hers

Venus Williams (L) and Serena Williams (R) at the US Open 2022 - Source: Getty

Since her playing days, Serena Williams has been an entrepreneur. In March 2022, she raised $111 million for her venture capital firm Serena Ventures. Publishing a report about this, the New York Times posted an image of Venus Williams instead of Serena Williams.

Serena shared an image of the published report on X and wrote:

"No matter how far we come, we get reminded that it’s not enough. This is why I raised $111M for Serena Ventures. To support the founders who are overlooked by engrained systems woefully unaware of their biases. Because even I am overlooked. You can do better, New York Times."

Later, the New York Times issued an apology, writing:

"This was our mistake. It was due to an error when selecting photos for the print edition, and it did not appear online. A correction will appear in tomorrow’s paper."

After retiring from the sport in September 2022, Serena has embraced motherhood as a parent to two daughters. She also runs Wyn Beauty and Serena Ventures.