And yes, they were all that throughout their lives, as their unique CV testified, and now, on this Friday evening in New York, also a single tennis match. According to the boring facts, it was only a game in the first round of the women's doubles competition at the US Open. But what happened next also told a lot in the larger context about what personalities with aura can trigger when they exercise their duties in the right place.
In any case, it was not a given that Serena and Venus Williams formed a unit together. Four years ago they said goodbye as a duo at the US Open. Serena, 23-time Grand Slam singles champion and an icon as an athlete but also as a fighter for women's rights, against racism and discrimination, then withdrew into her private life. She acted as a businesswoman, took care of her family and her two daughters Alexis Olympia, 8, and Adira, 2. Venus, who won seven Grand Slam singles titles, continued on the highest professional tennis series, the WTA Tour, she could never let go, until today. The fact that she still makes appearances, even as 618th in the world rankings, is because she is Venus and constantly gets wild cards. Tournaments promise her that she can play in the main fields. Your name draws.
When a Williams goes on the pitch, it always triggers something. And if two go on the pitch at the same time...
Tennis, one could interpret the double comeback of Serena and Venus Williams, means everything to them, they live this discipline that gave them so much, success, fame, social advancement. But the US Open also benefited enormously from this wonderfully warm summer night in Queens. It was as if everyone was on a journey through time, the Williams sisters and around 23,000 spectators on board, who initially cheered along slowly, but then woke up and experienced a tennis party like before. The two exceptional talents won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles together. When a Williams goes on the pitch, it always triggers something. And if two people go onto the pitch at once, a stadium can take off like a spaceship and start to vibrate.
The fact that something outside the norm was taking place here could be determined by two things alone. A doubles is actually never, ever, ever scheduled at Grand Slam tournaments on the main court, the Center Court; this place is reserved for the supreme discipline, the singles. After the Williams sisters' game, the duel between Ben Shelton and Denis Shapovalov was scheduled - the American Shelton defeated the Canadian in four sets and thus reached the round of 16.
Serena Williams experiences an unpleasant reunion against a young Australian
And when the doubles started, something else happened that was completely out of line: it became quieter. The spectators watched without constantly talking, chatting or chatting. One of the peculiarities of the US Open is that the audience behaves as if they were at home in their living room. You eat and drink, come in, go out, chat the whole time. The result: When 23,000 people chat, a funnel-like cauldron like Arthur Ashe Stadium creates a constant hum and hum, as if millions of bees were being heard. And now it wasn't quiet like on Center Court at Wimbledon. But at least it was quieter. It's quieter than ever before during previous night sessions. People actually watched spellbound.
In terms of play, they were offered a 99 percent perfect show, but from an American perspective, the final sense of achievement of the two main characters was completely missing. Serena and Venus Williams ultimately lost 3:6, 7:6 (6), 6:7 (7:10) against the Australian Maya Joint and Chan Hao-ching from Taiwan. And for Serena Williams, who only made her comeback in early summer, there was another frustrating event. At Wimbledon, when she competed in a singles match again for the first time after four years of abstinence and thanks to a wildcard, she had already failed in three sets against the same joint, who was more than 24 years her junior.
But even without a win, the evening turned out to be a party, and it didn't really matter that Serena seemed pretty rusty in many of her actions; she often lacked timing and precision in her shots. Venus was clearly the better of the two. Overall, the level of the game could be improved, but that wasn't the point at all. Whenever Serena and Venus performed Williams-style sledgehammer scoring, the crowd cheered. That's what it was about. The seats remained occupied throughout, and that's saying something. The game lasted 3:02 hours. Hardly anyone went out and wanted to miss the spectacle. When Alexander Zverev made his first two appearances at Arthur Ashe Stadium at night, things looked completely different.
Like at Wimbledon: Serena Williams skips the press conference
Serena and Venus Williams will probably be seen again somewhere in the tennis world, although they have not previously said anything to the contrary. They could not be asked about their future plans because after the match they announced that they were “not available” for the obligatory press conference. Serena Williams had already canceled her media appearance at Wimbledon after her singles defeat.
This was unfortunate for the public, who would of course have liked to know how the two found their evening and what happened next. But the PK cancellation basically told enough to know that Serena and Venus Williams still have the old hunger, grit and ambition. Even as they left the court, Serena smiled tightly, as if she had bitten into unripe lemons. The Sister Act took it absolutely personally that they lost. In the decisive tiebreak they even led 5-0. Their overreaction is most likely good news for tennis. Because that's certainly not how the two of them want to be remembered: as losers.
