The Rivalry between Serena and Venus Williams Part IV
The fourth part of this special tennis feature is aimed at giving the reader an insight into 2002, a landmark year in the rivalry of the Williams sisters. The first three parts featured an introduction to the sisters and their
careers, as well as an analysis of their matches from 1999 to 2001.
2002: NASDAQ-100 Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open
In 2002, the year after their first Grand Slam final, Venus and Serena Williams would face each other four times. The first meeting which the two played against each other in 2002 was at the NASDAQ-100 Open. The two sisters battled
it out in the semifinal of the event, and Serena got away with a straight sets 6-2, 6-2 win. This was the first victory Serena scored over Venus since 1999, and only the second career win against her sister. Venus’s performance in the match, and her consequent
defeat, was described by critics as “listless”. By defeating her, Serena Williams ended her sister’s 22 consecutive matches winning streak. In addition to this, Serena also interrupted Venus’s record of three straight titles at the NASDAQ-100 Open.
Their next meeting of the year occurred on the clay courts in Paris. It was their second Grand Slam tournament final, but only the first one on clay. Once again, Serena Williams managed to defeat her elder sister at Roland Garros,
finishing the match with a score line of 7-5, 6-3. This victory at the French Open finally ended Serena Williams’s three year long drought where Grand Slam titles were concerned. This is also the longest amount of time that the player has gone without winning
a Grand Slam. It was also the first and only final ever played between the two sisters at the French Open. With their qualification for the title match at Roland Garros, Venus and Serena Williams booked themselves the two top spots, respectively, on the Women’s
Tennis Association ranking lists.
After almost exactly a month, the two sisters made it to the final of another Grand Slam, this time at the All England Club. For the third time this year, Serena defeated Venus in straight sets 7-6(4), 6-3. With the Wimbledon victory,
Serena took over the WTA rankings and progressed past her sister to the World No.1 position for the first time. However, Venus was still the winner where their head to head record was concerned – she had won five matches out of a total of nine, with four of
those victories achieved in Grand Slams. Despite this, Serena Williams was now the gold standard for women’s tennis and was seen as a player who was setting the agenda for future WTA players.
Once again, Serena and Venus teamed up to win the doubles title of the Wimbledon event together.
Their fourth and final match of the year was fought in the title match of the last Grand Slam, the US Open in New York. The match would determine not just the trophy of the event, but also the World No. 1 ranking. Serena Williams
won the match 6-4, 6-3 with what critics called a “blistering” performance.
Recap:
Until 2002, the sisters had a head to head record of 5-1, with the advantage going to Venus. However, 2002 would be the year to change that. It was not just the year in which they met the most times, it was also the first year
in which Serena ended the year with a better head to head record against her sister. She won all four of their matches. The new head to head score was 5 all.
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