"Venus Williams should have won" - Serena Williams names Australian Open 2003 final as the most "intense" match she played against her sister

Serena Williams recently described the 2003 Australian Open final as the most "intense" match she has ever played against her sister, Venus Williams. The 23-time Grand Slam champion went on to express that Venus should have won that particular match.

At the 2003 Australian Open, Williams was attempting to complete which was deemed a "Serena Slam," a feat which involved winning both a Career Grand Slam and a non-calendar year Grand Slam.

Having already secured victories at the 2002 French Open, 2002 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2002 US Open, the former World No. 1 completed the "Serena Slam" by winning the 2003 Melbourne Slam.

Serena Williams was the top seed at the 2003 Australian Open. She defeated players like Emilie Loit, Els Callens, 26th seed Tamarine Tanasugarn, and 18th seed Eleni Daniilidou in the first four rounds. She then went on to overcome 25th seed Meghann Shaughnessy and fourth seed Kim Clijsters in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, to secure her spot in the final.

In the championship match, the 23-time Grand Slam champion faced her sister and second seed Venus Williams, and emerged victorious with a score of 7–6(4), 3–6, 6–4. This win marked Serena's first Australian Open title and her fifth Grand Slam title overall.

Serena Williams recently made an appearance on the YouTube talk show 'Hot Ones' where she was asked to name the most "intense" match she has played against Venus Williams.

The former World No. 1 revealed that "mentally," the 2003 Australian Open final was the "most intense," as it was her first opportunity to win four Grand Slams in a row and achieve the 'Serena Slam.'

"Oh man! The most intense match, I don't know for me the most mentally like mine was Australia 2023, I mean goodness 2003 (laughs). That final was so huge because it was the first time I could win four Grand Slams in a row which would be dubbed as a 'Serena Slam,'" Serena Williams said [5:23].

Serena Williams stated that the match was "tough" and admitted that Venus Williams should have won the match as she had played exceptionally well throughout the tournament.

"That was a tough match cuz she [Venus Williams] actually played really really really well and to be honest she should have won. I remember she missed a shot that she wouldn't have missed in any other match, in any other setting and I think, I even looked at her across the side of the net thinking like, 'How could you miss that? like yikes,'" she added [5:41].

Williams said that after she had won a set, Venus had began to struggle under the pressure which, in turn, allowed her to capitalize on the opportunity and secure the victory as well as the title.

"I think from then it was just like, I won the second set and she started to crumble a little bit after that. And I could see that something had either the focus or something had just fallen even for a split second. I was like. 'Oh this is my chance to win this.' This is how you have to think as an athlete but it was tough," Serena Williams said [6:00].

Serena Williams next faced Venus Williams in an Australian Open final in 2017

Venus Williams and Serena Williams at the 2017 Australian Open

Serena Williams has won the Australian Open singles title seven times throughout her career. She has faced her sister Venus Williams in the Melbourne Major final only twice, in 2003 and 2017, winning on both the occasions.

In 2017, Williams entered the Australian Open as the second seed and began her campaign by defeating Belinda Bencic 6-4, 6-3, and then Lucie Safarova 6-3, 6-4 in the first and second rounds, respectively.

The former World No. 1 then overcame Nicole Gibbs 6-1, 6-3 in the third round and 16th seed Barbora Strycova 7-5, 6-4 in the fourth round. In the quarterfinals, Williams defeated the ninth seed Johanna Konta 6-2, 6-3, and then triumphed over Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-2, 6-1 in the semifinals to secure her spot in the final.

In the championship match, Serena Williams went up against Venus Williams once again and defeated her 6-4, 6-4 to win the 2017 Australian Open, her seventh Melbourne Major singles title and her 23rd and last Grand Slam title overall.

During this tournament, Williams was also pregnant with her first daughter, Olympia Ohanian.