WHAT would American tennis be without the sisters?
Showing posts with label Venus Williams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Venus Williams. Show all posts
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Saturday, July 05, 2008
House of Williams
VENUS WILLIAMS joins tennis greats Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova with her fifth Wimbledon championship in the Open Era.
And she finally beat Serena Williams again in a Slam final. After losing to Serena in five Slam finals, four of them in a row, it was clearly Venus' turn to get some revenge and take another title over Serena, her first since the 2001 US Open.
This is the third time in Venus' career that she defended a Slam title. She's now tied with recently "retired" Justine Henin with seven Slams, one shy of Serena, who remains the only active player to have won all four Slams.
You can read our takes on the match in the Open Thread.
Venus followed up her singles championship victory with a 6-2, 6-2 victory in doubles alongside sister Serena over Lisa Raymond of the United States and Samantha Stosur of Australia.
Virginia Wade, my favorite commentator, said that of all the doubles matches featuring Serena and Venus that she has seen, this was the first match where they played pure doubles as a team rather than scintillating singles tennis on a doubles court.
Quite a feat only hours after the grueling emotions of a Slam singles final against each other.
This is the third time, 2000 and 2002 previously, that they've won the doubles title. All three times, one of them has also won the singles title.
If theirs isn't among the greatest stories in the history of the sport - of all sports - I don't know what is.
And she finally beat Serena Williams again in a Slam final. After losing to Serena in five Slam finals, four of them in a row, it was clearly Venus' turn to get some revenge and take another title over Serena, her first since the 2001 US Open.
This is the third time in Venus' career that she defended a Slam title. She's now tied with recently "retired" Justine Henin with seven Slams, one shy of Serena, who remains the only active player to have won all four Slams.
You can read our takes on the match in the Open Thread.
Venus followed up her singles championship victory with a 6-2, 6-2 victory in doubles alongside sister Serena over Lisa Raymond of the United States and Samantha Stosur of Australia.
Virginia Wade, my favorite commentator, said that of all the doubles matches featuring Serena and Venus that she has seen, this was the first match where they played pure doubles as a team rather than scintillating singles tennis on a doubles court.
Quite a feat only hours after the grueling emotions of a Slam singles final against each other.
This is the third time, 2000 and 2002 previously, that they've won the doubles title. All three times, one of them has also won the singles title.
If theirs isn't among the greatest stories in the history of the sport - of all sports - I don't know what is.
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Like Little Black Girls
THEY DID IT. Serena and Venus Williams will meet in their seventh Grand Slam final, the first in five years on championship weekend at the All England Lawn Tennis Club.
The two best grass court players of this generation.
Venus has won Wimbledon four times and been to six finals. This will be her seventh. The only player she's lost to in finals is her little sister in 2002 and 2003.
Serena has won the Venus Rosewater Dish twice and been to three finals. This will be her fourth. She lost the final to Maria Sharapova in 2004.
These two greats had to stave off two gutsy opponents in today's battles. Serena ended the dreams of Chinese wild card and unlikely semifinalist Zheng Jie who gave Serena all she could handle in the second set. Venus dismissed first-time Wimbledon semifinalist Elena Dementieva from Russia, who also put up a strong challenge in the second set.
The sisters bounced up and down like little black girls when they clinched their respective victories.
Here's to a sister Slam.
The two best grass court players of this generation.
Venus has won Wimbledon four times and been to six finals. This will be her seventh. The only player she's lost to in finals is her little sister in 2002 and 2003.
Serena has won the Venus Rosewater Dish twice and been to three finals. This will be her fourth. She lost the final to Maria Sharapova in 2004.
These two greats had to stave off two gutsy opponents in today's battles. Serena ended the dreams of Chinese wild card and unlikely semifinalist Zheng Jie who gave Serena all she could handle in the second set. Venus dismissed first-time Wimbledon semifinalist Elena Dementieva from Russia, who also put up a strong challenge in the second set.
The sisters bounced up and down like little black girls when they clinched their respective victories.
Here's to a sister Slam.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Photo of the Day
SERENA WILLIAMS and her sister and teammate Venus arrive to play against India's Sania Mirza and American Bethanie Mattek during their doubles tennis match of the 2008 Wimbledon championships at The All England Tennis Club in southwest London, on July 2, 2008. (CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images)
Monday, August 27, 2007
Black Out in New York City
Althea Gibson who won the US Nationals in 1957, becoming the first Black person with what became the US Open, gets her just due in a moving tribute on Arthur Ashe Stadium tonight. We got on Wimbledon for not giving Althea her due this year, but she actually won Roland Garros in 1956 to become the first Black person to win a Slam and her anniversary last year was overlooked by all. Still, better late than never.
The telecast opened with Serena and Venus Williams in giving props to Althea. A Black hero. A woman's hero. A tennis idol. Goosebumps.
Billie Jean King, who received her own tribute last year whe the USTA Tennis Center was renamed in her honor, holds a plaque honoring Althea in the opening night ceremony. Althea was officially inducted into the US Open Court of Champions. She died broke in 2003. Too bad she wasn't around to experience all of this. Better late than never.
Aretha Franklin holds her arms aloft after putting down "Respect" for the rapt audience.
Rachel Robinson, widow of Jackie Robinson who integrated major league baseball, looks on.
Janet Jackson takes it all in from the Williams family box.
Jackie Joyner Kersey, back-to-back Olympic Gold Medalist in the heptathlon, and Carol Moseley Braun, first Black woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate (Illinois), hold court as pioneering Black women in their professions. Other women honored include Dr. Mae Jemison, first Black woman to travel into space; Dr. Debi Thomas, 1988 Olympic silver medalist in figure skating; Sharon Pratt, first Black woman elected major of a major U.S. city; Yolanda Adams, Grammy winning gospel singer; Vonetta Flowers, Olympic Gold Medalist, 2002 U.S. bobsledding team; Ella Bully-Cummings, first Black female chief of police, Detroit; Sheila Crump Johnson, co-founder Black Entertaiment Television (BET), owner of 3 professional sports franchises and sole owner of PGA Tour golf courses; Traci Green, first Black female tennis head coach at Harvard; Nikki Giovanni, award winning poet and activist; Loretta Claiborne, first Special Olympics athlete to win the ESPY and the first Black woman to win the Arthur Ashe Courage Award; Susan L. Taylor of Essence, winner of Henry Johnson Fisher Award, the highest award in magazine publishing; Lynette Woodard, first female member of Harlem Globetrotters; Cynthia Cooper, two-time WNBA most valuable player; Roberta Flack, first artist ever to win back-to-back Grammy's for Record of the Year; and Zina Garrison, first Black player to win Olympic tennis Gold Medal. Phylicia Rashad, the first Black woman to win a Tony for lead actress in a drama, gave a speech about Althea near the beginning of the tribute and introduced the other pioneers.
Oracene Price, mother of multiple Slam champions Serena and Venus, is ravishing with gold hair.
Donald Young wins his first Slam match, coming from a set down to defeat Chris Guccione of Australia 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.
Venus reacts to setting a new serve record for women. 129mph. Ouch. She also won her first-round match over Hungarian qualifier Kira Nagy 6-2, 6-1.
Miami native Ahsha Rolle musta felt the love. She upset No. 17 seed and 2006 quarterfinalist Tatiana Golovin of France 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 for her first win in Flushing Meadows.
Qualifier Scoville Jenkins isn't so lucky. He falls to Roger Federer 3-6, 2-6, 4-6 in his first round, bringing his US Open record to 1-3. Apparently, he was out of the game for a while with a wrist injury that forced him to wear a cast. He has enough talent to be a decent professional player but I still feel that before his injury he got too little help from the USTA. Perhaps his name and his cornrows aren't helping his cause. Just sayin.
Serena closes out the night, shaking off some rust, and subdues hard hitting lefty Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-3, 7-5. Serena gives the thumbs up after the match. She hit her backhand well. No sign of injury. Great sign moving forward.
The telecast opened with Serena and Venus Williams in giving props to Althea. A Black hero. A woman's hero. A tennis idol. Goosebumps.
Billie Jean King, who received her own tribute last year whe the USTA Tennis Center was renamed in her honor, holds a plaque honoring Althea in the opening night ceremony. Althea was officially inducted into the US Open Court of Champions. She died broke in 2003. Too bad she wasn't around to experience all of this. Better late than never.
Aretha Franklin holds her arms aloft after putting down "Respect" for the rapt audience.
Rachel Robinson, widow of Jackie Robinson who integrated major league baseball, looks on.
Janet Jackson takes it all in from the Williams family box.
Jackie Joyner Kersey, back-to-back Olympic Gold Medalist in the heptathlon, and Carol Moseley Braun, first Black woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate (Illinois), hold court as pioneering Black women in their professions. Other women honored include Dr. Mae Jemison, first Black woman to travel into space; Dr. Debi Thomas, 1988 Olympic silver medalist in figure skating; Sharon Pratt, first Black woman elected major of a major U.S. city; Yolanda Adams, Grammy winning gospel singer; Vonetta Flowers, Olympic Gold Medalist, 2002 U.S. bobsledding team; Ella Bully-Cummings, first Black female chief of police, Detroit; Sheila Crump Johnson, co-founder Black Entertaiment Television (BET), owner of 3 professional sports franchises and sole owner of PGA Tour golf courses; Traci Green, first Black female tennis head coach at Harvard; Nikki Giovanni, award winning poet and activist; Loretta Claiborne, first Special Olympics athlete to win the ESPY and the first Black woman to win the Arthur Ashe Courage Award; Susan L. Taylor of Essence, winner of Henry Johnson Fisher Award, the highest award in magazine publishing; Lynette Woodard, first female member of Harlem Globetrotters; Cynthia Cooper, two-time WNBA most valuable player; Roberta Flack, first artist ever to win back-to-back Grammy's for Record of the Year; and Zina Garrison, first Black player to win Olympic tennis Gold Medal. Phylicia Rashad, the first Black woman to win a Tony for lead actress in a drama, gave a speech about Althea near the beginning of the tribute and introduced the other pioneers.
Oracene Price, mother of multiple Slam champions Serena and Venus, is ravishing with gold hair.
Donald Young wins his first Slam match, coming from a set down to defeat Chris Guccione of Australia 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.
Venus reacts to setting a new serve record for women. 129mph. Ouch. She also won her first-round match over Hungarian qualifier Kira Nagy 6-2, 6-1.
Miami native Ahsha Rolle musta felt the love. She upset No. 17 seed and 2006 quarterfinalist Tatiana Golovin of France 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 for her first win in Flushing Meadows.
Qualifier Scoville Jenkins isn't so lucky. He falls to Roger Federer 3-6, 2-6, 4-6 in his first round, bringing his US Open record to 1-3. Apparently, he was out of the game for a while with a wrist injury that forced him to wear a cast. He has enough talent to be a decent professional player but I still feel that before his injury he got too little help from the USTA. Perhaps his name and his cornrows aren't helping his cause. Just sayin.
Serena closes out the night, shaking off some rust, and subdues hard hitting lefty Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-3, 7-5. Serena gives the thumbs up after the match. She hit her backhand well. No sign of injury. Great sign moving forward.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Venus Williams Wins Fourth Wimbledon Title
Former champions, from left rear, Bjorn Borg, his wife Patricia, and Martina Navratilova, front row, from left, Billie Jean King, unidentified, Anne Jones and Virginia Wade sit in the Royal Box, during the Women's Singles final betwen Marion Bartoli and Venus Williams on the Centre Court at Wimbledon, Saturday July 7, 2007.
Dr. Walter Bartoli is embraced by Richard Williams during the trophy ceremony after their daughter's final. Earlier, the fathers, who both bucked the system in their respective countries by developing the talents of their daughters in unorthodox ways, high-fived. Later, Dr. Bartoli openly wept and was comforted by Williams.
Venus Williams joins the sport's elite with her fourth Wimbledon championship. Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King looked on as Venus overpowered Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-1 to become the fourth woman in the Open Era to win four or more singles titles at the All England Lawn and Tennis Club. At No. 31 in the world, she is also the lowest-ranked winner of the Venus Rosewater Dish in history.
Even though Venus is considered a model of grace and class, this victory on the 50th anniversary of Althea Gibson's color-barrier-breaking first Wimbledon title might be Venus' most defiant.
Maid Marion may have lost the title, but she won new fans around the globe. I'd say her debut Slam final performance was arguably the best effort by a woman since Maria Sharapova won here in 2004. The 2006 Gonad Award winner for Strongest Ovaries is sure to repeat in 2007.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal advanced to the finals for a second straight year in two listless semifinals not worthy of coverage.
Related Articles
Scoop Jackson - Celebrating Independence at Wimbledon
Bonnie DeSimone - Even at 27, Williams remains as dangerous as ever
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)