Remarkable sisters doing it for themselves
Another all-Williams final. Not everyone’s bowl of strawberries, it has to be said.
Too much sisterly love around. Not enough in-your-face rivalry.
But in a women’s tennis world which already misses the recently retired Justine Henin and which is inhabited by an increasing number of anonymous Russians and Serbs, the progression of the Williams sisters in a year the women top seeds fell so tamely lends the final authentic quality.
It is also a chance to silence the doubters.
Some conspiracy-lovers have always believed the Williams sisters carve up their matches like they might share out their “breakfast wheaties” as Serena quaintly describes them.
The subject was brought up during Elena Dementieva’s post semi-final press conference after losing to Venus and it produced a fiery riposte.
Venus finds any question that the family ‘fix’ their matches “offensive,” an insult to her professionalism.
So they should. After all, you would have thought their most recent battle on Centre Court in 2003 would have put paid to any such thoughts.
Serena won that one 4-6 6-4 6-2 in a final as competitive as any in modern times.
It’s true, their matches have not always contained the piquancy of Chris Evert v Martina Navratilova.
How can they? They live in the same apartment, share breakfast together, practise together, play doubles together and, as Serena has pointed out, compare the various merits of men together.
Their matches lack sharp focus for spectators, as if the crowd do not know or care who they support.
Consequently the atmosphere is often muted.
The bottom line, however, is that tennis history will record the era of the Williams sisters as one of the most remarkable in sport.
That one black American girl from a Californian ghetto should become one of the world’s greatest tennis players is remarkable enough. That two such sisters should dominate the sport is extraordinary.
Even more incredible is that in a sport which requires a degree of obsession they appear to be able to pick and choose their grand slam titles.
Where others hit tennis balls day in and day out they have dipped into acting and fashion, spurned the treadmill of being slaves to their world rankings and instead chosen to peak for the tournaments which matter.
It makes their feats more, not less, impressive. Who will win? The statistics are barely conclusive.
They have played each other twice in Wimbledon finals, in 2002 and 2003, and Serena has won both.
Venus, however, will be playing her seventh Wimbledon final and she has lifted the Venus Rosewater dish four times.
Meanwhile, Serena is ahead 8-7 in their 15 career encounters.
On current form, however, it is Venus who has the edge. She is moving better, serving crisper and her groundstrokes are precision tools compared to the wilder hitting of her sister.
So I take Venus to take her fifth Wimbledon singles title even if Serena does “steal” her breakfast as she has playfully intimated.
“It is every Williams for themselves,” says Venus.
Wimbledon and tennis needs a final which proves just that.
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