The Williams sisters: I have a dream
Roar Guru
By Vinay Verma, 31 May 2010 Vinay Verma is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- French Open, Roland Garros, Serena Williams, Tennis, venus williams
Serena and Venus Williams are the brightest planets in the tennis galaxy. It is fitting that these two women represent American hopes at Roland Garros, in this second decade of the 21st Century.
This is a story that speaks of what is possible. The American system is often derided but if it throws up people like the Williamses it cannot be all bad.
Ranked 1 and 2, the sisters have been playing for fifteen years on a tour that can be both bitchy and bewitching.
The women’s tour has been more watchable than the men’s for over a decade. We have Henin, Sharapova and Stosur to keep the Williams’ honest. No other siblings, in any sport, have both been ranked number 1.
In 1999 Serena beat Martina Hingis in the US Open final, becoming the first African-American woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Althea Gibson’s victory in the 1957 US Open. Fittingly it was in the Arthur Ashe Stadium at Flushing Meadows, as Arthur was the last African-American to win a major (in 1975 at Wimbledon).
Equal prize money at the French Open for both men and women is an indication of the quality of women’s tennis.
The winner gets 1.12 million Euro. The other majors follow suit and it is no longer justifiable to dismiss the women’s tour as “hit and giggle”. The sisters have taken tennis to the next level in terms of athleticism and intensity. Their strokes intimidate most players and nearly all lineswomen. The only one they cannot outstare is Hawkeye.
Coached by their extrovert father, the two sisters have 43 major titles between them including 19 in singles and 22 doubles.
They have dominated women’s tennis in the last decade as no others have done in the history of the game. There have been periods of disinterest and injuries that have allowed shooting stars like Clisjters and Jankovic to dominate sporadically. But when fit and motivated, the others make up the supporting cast.
Serena and Venus possess a serve that many male players would love to call their own; regularly clocking 200 plus kmh.
Venus has a forehand that is simple as it is explosive. It is hit with all the ferocity of a race expressing its freedom. Serena’s two-fisted backhand stuns like a water cannon.
These are two supremely talented and dedicated athletes. With all their millions they still train with the hunger of their early childhood. There is a lesson here for all the youngsters cocooned in their middle-class comfort and sense of entitlement. Sport only owes you what you deserve.
It is nine years since the sisters were ranked 1 and 2 at a major championship. This French Open could see them meet in a Grand Slam final for the first time since Wimbledon 2009.
There is a rivalry between the two that goes beyond sibling. Venus is the introverted, almost school-marmish, brooding athlete who can be too hard on herself. Serena on the other hand is as extroverted as Tom Jones around flying underwear.
Henin or Stosur could yet derail Serena. But Serena will have to be playing poorly and the other two have to be playing at their peak. Such is the disparity in talent between the Williams’ and the other hopefuls.
The Williams sisters are that rarest breed of people, for it is not the sport that defines them, but they define the sport. Think Jack Nicklaus with golf, Muhammad Ali with boxing, Babe Ruth with baseball, and Bradman with cricket.
Can you see anyone beating them but themselves?
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Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 31st 2010 @ 7:57am | Report comment
Well written and well-researched, Vinay.
Sad that your and Venus’s dream was over last night when she was beaten in straight sets by Petrova.
Now it’s up to Serena to make up for her sister’s loss.
And of course there is Women’s Doubles.
Vinay Verma said | May 31st 2010 @ 8:28am | Report comment
Yes, Kersi,half the dream is in tatters. An error riddled match and Venus had her chance in the second set to take the lead. They both had 7 opputunities to break but Petrova converted 4 0f 7 and Venus 1 of 7. They both served at an average of 180kmh but Petrova won more of her first serves than Venus. The match hinged on who would hold their nerve and Petrova was mentally stronger on the day.
I much preferred the Sharapova-Henin clash and here again it was the conversion of the break points. Sharapova had ample opportunities but could convert only 3 of 15 while Henin converted 5 of 9. Henin’s backhand is a gilt-edged security and unbreakable under pressure. Sam Stosur will have to take her chances and serve at more than 70%. And she has to keep the points short.You cannot rally and win against Henin on clay. Her defense is immaculate and she makes you play that one extra ball.
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 31st 2010 @ 10:58am | Report comment
My favourite woman tennis player was and is Evonne Goolagong. Margaret Court and Billie-Jean King disagreed on many issues but one thing they agreed upon was the talent of then 19 year-old Australian, Goolagong. She made the original Australians (and all Australians) as proud in 1970s as sprinter Cathy Freeman did during Sydney Olympics and thereafter.
One thing kept worrying Goolagong, the aboriginal tag. Once during an interview in Europe, the usually ever-smiling Evonne raised her eyebrows: “Why aboriginal? Why not simply Australian?”
sheek said | May 31st 2010 @ 11:15am | Report comment
Vinay,
“Sport only owes you what you deserve” Very true.
Probably applies to life to a large extent also, although there are things that can happen to us which our totally out of our personal control.
The Williams sisters are great for tennis, although not my personal cup of tea. They are not the sort of people you can easily warm to. I agree with Kersi, Evonne Goolagong was a doll. Tough on-court, engaging off-court, always graceful.
Back in 2000, I was heading out to Stadium Australia to catch a day’s athletics in the main arena. Sitting diagonally across from me in the train was a negro gentleman who I thought was vaguely familiar. He ‘appeared’ important & was regularly on his mobile phone.
Eventually I realised who it was. It was the Williams’ sisters dad, going out to the Olympic precinct to no doubt watch his daughters play…..
Paul Adelaide said | May 31st 2010 @ 3:49pm | Report comment
Vinay, you may be slightly out of sync with me on this one.
In my view, the Williams’ sisters show the worst aspects of being Americans. A generalisation, I know! They are brash, self-interested and unloveable. I support any player they are playing against. For me, they are in the same bag as Hewitt. Their personalities alienate me despite their undoubted ability.
Have you forgotten Henin and Sharipova?
I think the ladies draw looks like Serena vs Henin and will be a superb contest.
The mens draw holds immensely more interest this year with Federer, Nadal and Jokovic to fight it out.
Vinay Verma said | May 31st 2010 @ 4:15pm | Report comment
Paul Adelaide..you have mirrored what Sheek also alludes to. That the williams sisters are unloveable. I see a trend in sport where a lot of athletes mouth the same mundane scipted answers. Hewitt and the Williams’ do alieneate people and I am making allowances for sporting excellence. I do not condone unsporting behaviour but I am curious why even the American press do not eulogise the Williams as much as they do The McEnroes,Connors and Everts’.
I see in the Williams the same struggle someone like Muhammad Ali went thru. Even though the Americans have a black President I detect an undercurrent that the populace is divided. For me the Williams have taken women’s tennis to another level and the rest have had to lift their game.
Hennin Sharapova was interesting in that Sharapova had her chances but that Henin backhand is so reliable under pressure. Surely the best in the business. I think Serena can blow her off the court if she is on song. But Henis v Stosur is no gimme.
Nadal v Federer would be worth staying up for. I am leaning towards the Fed in this” high interest” game.
Mick Gold Coast QLD said | September 1st 2010 @ 12:52am | Report comment
I’m late to the discussion, Vinay, a broken down old lumbering forward shuffling from lineout to scrum to ruck!
This interests me ‘cos I liked the Williams sisters right from the jump, for the excellence of their play and for their determination to succeed which has lasted a decade or so, I suppose. I’m not a tennis fan however I will watch occassionally when Serena plays because I reckon she is a study in focus, discipline and ability.
I’ve seen photos of her out of the tennis season that suggest she’s got to work hard to keep the weight off, which she does – there’s the discipline. Next time one sees her on court she’s fit as can be and continuously powerful. There’s a Gary Player like toughness there.
I also like her ability to focus – recently I saw her as arrogant as can be, as she dismissed a request from the handler of one of the new young darlings to enter the court first. Her response was monosyllabic, simply imperious – like so few she has earned that right, I say. I did enjoy that – as entitled as a Richards, Lillee, Lloyd, Warne or Imran Khan.
Connors and McEnroe got away with some of the worst behaviour I have ever seen on the sporting field and they got nothing like the vitriol spat at this girl at times. From times past, when I followed tennis with greater interest, about the only thing I ever heard Laver or Rosewall utter was “thank you”.
She is especially focussed on the job out there, and when it’s done she reverts to a simply delighted and (I say) gracious persona, enjoying her success. There’s a happy effervescence rather than an Evert like almost commercial cynicism – I was surprised when I saw that one close up, years ago in Sydney. On this count, therefore, I disagree with sheek.
The ease and readiness of a genuine smile can, I reckon, offer some measure of a person’s nature, and she sure has a great smile. Apart from that she conducts herself in respectable terms in her off court life.
The US media stance I know little about, apart from the likelihood Frank Sinatra described them accurately in his stoush with Bob Hawke back in 1974. I do, however, admire the objective incisiveness and carefully substantiated pieces of Charles Krauthammer and Thomas Sowell.
The race thing is like alphabet soup – all over the place and difficult to discern real from shrill politicking. I’ve been there and seen some of the most appalling conditions, but I’ve been elsewhere, with no social security safety net, and seen the poorest people in the most gleeful places in which they’ve made their own paradise. Bill Cosby expressed a telling view in 2004 in a speech to the NAACP. I say there is no one American view – it’s like a collection of discrete places with their enclaves and distinctive attitudes just like other countries.
A year or two back I encountered a retired wealthy black American and his (history professor) wife visiting Auckland Museum. In a darkened area, with heavy timber display cases, he stood beside my wife* and after a moment said “If we stay very still none of these white people will even know we’re here!” Without blinking she responded “For God’s sake don’t smile”. They roared hugely and we enjoyed a marvellous discussion after about many things, including black and white America.
He put me onto some literature which educated me better to the history and to the enormous number of successful stories like his (taking opportunities, hard yakka) that go unmentioned by the mainstream media. In those terms I suggest the press not eulogising the Williams girls is no measure of how lots of Americans view them.
* Asian, very dark, gorgeous, the Family Empress – untroubled by PC group think, who has no thought about disdaining people from other groups in her own country ‘cos that’s the way it is.
I enjoy your well thought out articles, I disagree sometimes. And I’ve enjoyed this discourse.
Roger Rational said | May 31st 2010 @ 4:22pm | Report comment
The women’s game is more watchable than the men’s? Well, maybe – but only for non-tennis reasons! For me, the women’s tour is a bit of a joke – when Serena can spend half the year off and then come back and win a Slam without any game time and about 10 kilos overweight, then I struggle to have respect for women’s tennis. It’s absurd that they get paid the same as the men.
Vinay Verma said | May 31st 2010 @ 5:24pm | Report comment
Roger Rational, apart from Federer and Nadal and maybe,Del Porto the men’s game is lacking in “greats” In the 70′s and though the 90′s you had a host of players that were in contention for the no 1. Think Newcome,Connors,though to McEnroe,Goran,Borg,Lendl,Sampras,Agassi,Willander,
The women have kept it rolling with Graff, Seles,Capriati,Mauresmo,The Williams,Clisjsters,Henin,Sharapova,.
Serena on comeback proved she was the best even lacking match practice and believe me Henin is no slouch. A pocket battleship that never gives up. It is the fight and the love of the contest that defines great sport. The reason they get paid the same as the men is that they bring in the revenue. It has more to do with box office rather than gender equality.
I suggest you try and watch Stosur v Henin and then possibly Serena versus the winner. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Roger Rational said | May 31st 2010 @ 6:29pm | Report comment
Box office, yeah. But for their looks, Vinay. It’s the sex that sells, not their (dubious) quality. I say again, it’s ridiculous that a so-called world-class athlete can rock up for a Slam ten kilos overweight after sitting on her arse for six months and conquer the entire field. If Federer tried that he’d be knocked out in the 1st Round.
Vinay Verma said | May 31st 2010 @ 7:54pm | Report comment
Roger Rational..no dispute that sex sells. We see it in all the sports in America. I would be interested to know when Rugby League started with its cheer girls. Maybe we should stop watching so many American sitcoms and other sugar laden “cereals”
To be honest the only relief while watching South Africa play Windies was the advent of the cheergirls.
On a serious note sport does not need the “in your face” sideshows if the quality of the product was good enough.I will not watch all tennis. Only when the good and greats are playing. Top 5 in mens and top 10 in women. Sharapova and Henin are lowly ranked because of their layoffs.
Currently not watching any of the ladies for their looks. I stopped when Sabatini retired.