Serena Williams and Venus Williams have been one of the most dominating and successful players in tennis, since the beginning of the millennium. The sisters mainly rely on their raw power and booming aces to overcome opponents on their quest for success. Their rivalry is considered to be one of the fiercest in the world of tennis. They have played 27 times against each other in professional tournaments, with Serena leading 16-11.
They may not be able to face each other now, with Angelique Kerber putting a spanner in the works of the potential all-Williams final, but there have been some brilliant Williams showdowns in the past.
Their intense rivalry has cumulated in 8 Grand Slam finals, out of which Serena has won 6 and Venus has been victorious in 2 of them. They are also the only two women to have played against each other in four consecutive Grand Slam finals in the Open Era. Although they are very competitive on the court and go all out every time they face each other, they are very close off court and have won 13 Grand Slam doubles titles together. Let us now take a look at 5 of their greatest Grand Slam finals over the years:
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2001 US Open
- Venus Williams was the defending Champion for the 2001 edition of US Open, and she was in scintillating form all through the tournament. She did not drop a single set on her to the final, and had defeated greats like Kim Clijsters (6-3, 6-1) in the quarter final and Jennifer Capriati (6-4, 6-2) to take her place in the summit clash with her younger sister Serena, who was competing in her second US Open final, having been a champion herself in US Open 1999. She had defeated Linday Davenport (6-2, 6-7, 7-5) in the quarters and Martina Hingis (6-2, 6-2) in the semi-finals.
- The match was tough for Serena as Venus easily overpowered her 6-4, 6-2, to defend her title and win the 2001 US Open women’s singles title as well. She took just over an hour to and retain her US Open crown in front of a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium. The elder sibling was always on top during the match, with Serena guilty of a number of unforced errors. It was the first of many finals that the sisters had on the Grand Slam stage, and it was the start of an epic rivalry for the sisters
2002 French Open
This was one of Serena Williams’ initial steps to the Serena Slam The 2002 edition of French Open saw Serena Williams defeating defending champion Jennifer Capriati in the semi-finals to book a place in the final against her sister Venus Williams, who had defeated Clarisa Fernández to make her way to the final. This time, Serena took revenge for her loss to her elder sibling in the final of 2001 US Open, as she won the final 7-5, 6-3 to take home her first French Open title.
This has been considered to be one of the most important matches in Serena’s career, as it paved way to ‘The Serena Slam’. The French Open title was the first step for Serena towards her dominance in women’s tennis for the next couple of years as she went on to hold all Grand Slam titles, and became the fifth woman to do so in the history of women’s tennis. She defeated Venus in the next 4 Grand Slam finals, eventually losing to her a 17 year old prodigious Maria Sharapova in the final of 2004 Wimbledon.
2003 Australian Open
Serena was in phenomenal form that year, eventually taking the title The Australian Open of 2003 saw an upset in the very first round as two time defending champion Jennifer Capriati lost to Marlene Weingärtner. The tournament saw one of the greatest comebacks in women’s tennis as Serena Williams defeated Kim Clijsters (4-6, 6-3, 7-5) despite being 1-5 down in the third set and facing two match points to move into the final.
She carried on her phenomenal form as she faced her sister Venus yet again in the final. This time, she turned out to be the victor as she won the match 7–6(7–4), 3–6, 6–4 in a dramatic hard fought battle to clinch the title. This was the fourth straight Grand Slam title for her, and she completed the ‘Serena Slam’ with this victory. The match was emotionally stirring for the Williams siblings and they gave everything they had to win the title, with Serena eventually emerging as the Champion.
2008 Wimbledon
The two took each other on after a 5-year gap – and Venus came out on top - The 2008 Wimbledon had a dream grand finale match, as the Williams sisters were facing each other for the title after 5 long years. The last time they had faced one another in a final was the 2003 Wimbledon, which Serena had won 4–6, 6–4, and 6–2. Venus had defeated Elena Dementieva 6-1, 7-6 in her semi-final match and Serena had defeated Zheng Jie of China 6-2, 6-7 to give the crowd something to look forward to in the final of the tournament.
Venus Williams, who was the defending champion at that time, fought with a lot of determination and grit to overcome Serena 7-5, 6-4 after a gruelling match to defend her title. This was also one of the most successful Grand Slam single’s title for Venus as this was the second title for her without losing a set. The victory was Venus's fifth triumph on the grass courts in SW19. The sisters faced one another for the last time in a final in the subsequent edition of the Wimbledon, which was won by Serena.
2009 Wimbledon
- The Williams sisters encountered one other for the last time in a Grand Slam final at the 2009 Wimbledon. Venus was the two-time defending champion, and was expected to win it for the third consecutive year and become the first woman to win three successive titles here since Steffi Graf in the early Nineties.
Serena and Venus Williams last faced each other in a Slam final in 2009 However, she lost to her sister Serena in the final 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 in a match that had a lot of sentiments and theatrics from both sides of the court.
It was especially remarkable for Serena to win the title as she had come down from match point down in the semi-finals against Elena Dementieva 6-7, 7-5, 8-6 to make her way into the final. The match was played on the Fourth of July, and Serena won her third Venus Rosewater Dish and the 11th grand slam title of her career that day.
Venus Williams and Father Richard recall one match that 7-time Grand Slam champion "should have won"
