The Rivalry between Serena and Venus Williams Part VI
The sixth installment of this special series analyzes the Williams sisters and their respective performances in 2004 and 2005. Meanwhile, the first five sections offered both a brief introduction to Venus and Serena Williams, and
discussed the course of their legendary professional rivalry from 1999 to 2003.
2004:
The two Williams sisters did not face each other in professional tennis during this year. For the first time since 1998, neither of the sisters was able to win a Grand Slam event either. Analysts suggest that this is most probably
because of the traumatic effect their half sister Yetunde Price’s death had on them, and as a residual effect of the numerous injuries both sisters suffered through the previous year.
2005: NASDAQ-100 Open, US Open
This year would be a return to Grand Slam excellence for both the Williams. However, none of their Grand Slam final matches were pitted against each other; this may have been a sign of growing tennis talent and more competition
in the Women’s Tennis Association. However, both sisters were able to take away a Grand Slam singles title in 2005.
Their first match against each other was the NASDAQ-100 Open (now known as the Sony Ericsson Open), in the quarterfinals of the event. This was the third time the pair was meeting at Crandon Park. In the past three years, the only
matches the two players had competed in against one another had been the finals; this was a break from tradition, being their first meeting outside a title match since 2002. Venus Williams won the match with a score line of 6-1, 7-6(8). This was also the first
time that Venus was able to score a win over her little sister in four years.
The next tournament which the two sisters competed in against was yet another Grand Slam. They met on their home country’s turf, at Flushing Meadows in New York. Although they were competing in the US Open they met each other in
one of the earlier matches of the tournament in the fourth round, an occurrence which the sisters were not accustomed too.
Venus Williams had recently won Wimbledon, and had attempted to reach this round three times before with great effort. For the first time since she and Serena began to play against each other, Venus was somewhat favoured in the
head-to-head competition between the sisters. They competed in the third round of the US Open. The last time they had met this early in a tournament was at their very first match Down Under, at the Australian Open in 1999. For the second time that year, Venus
Williams defeated her little sister once again with a score line of 7-6(5), 6-2. Venus would go on in New York to reach the quarter finals of the event, where she was defeated by Kim Clijsters in three sets 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. Clijsters eventually won the US Open
that year. The Williams sisters had taken the US title from 1999 to 2002.
Recap:
In 2004, the two sisters yielded no Grand Slam tournament wins – it is possible that they were both traumatized by the events of the last year. However, they each won a Majors title in the next year, 2005, and also competed against
each other twice. One of these matches was at the NASDAQ-100 Open quarterfinals, and the other was at the fourth round of the US Open.
Venus emerged victorious in both these matches, and the head to head record was now tied at seven all.
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