Superlative Sisters
Venus and Serena Williams will meet in the Wimbledon final Saturday, the third title match between the sisters in the last four majors.
Both previous Sister Slams failed to live up to expectations, with Venus winning easily 6-2, 6-4 at the U.S. Open in September and Serena taking her turn 7-5, 6-3 at last month's French Open. In that match, Serena bettered her sister in a lackluster final peppered with 114 unforced errors.
The siblings, so close off the court, have had trouble bringing out the best in each other on the court. They have seemed uncomfortable on opposite sides of the net, rarely playing their best tennis at the same time.
Venus holds a 5-3 edge in career matches against her sister, though Serena has won three of the last four.
Asked to sum up their meetings, Venus said, "Just a lot of unforced errors basically."
That certainly hasn't been the case in their matches so far in this tournament, with both sisters thrashing opponents.
Serena, who hasn't dropped a set, crushed Amelie Mauresmo — who had looked so strong in beating Jennifer Capriati in the quarterfinals — 6-2, 6-1 in Thursday's semis. Venus brushed off Justine Henin 6-3, 6-2.
Serena's victory ensured that she will replace Venus as No. 1 in next week's rankings. Serena said she "shed a few tears" upon learning of her rise to the top.
"I worked really hard," she said. "I deserve it."
But Serena said the ranking won't count Saturday.
"Just because I'm No. 1 doesn't mean that I don't want to win Wimbledon," she said. "I'd rather win Wimbledon right now because maybe the ranking would come later on. So I'm really focusing on playing Venus.
"I'm going to have a lot of fun out there. I'm going to out there and really try to win Wimbledon. I want to belong to the All England Club."
It will be the first all-sister Wimbledon final since 1884, when Maud Watson beat Lilian Watson 6-8, 6-3, 6-3.
In the past 12 months, Serena Williams has lost just four matches, reached nine finals and won six titles. She's made the final of her last three Grand Slams (she missed the Australian Open in January with an injury) and is riding a tour-high 18-match winning streak.
"Just has an all-around game," Venus said. "She can do anything. A game pretty much similar to mine, so I respect that, and I know where she's coming from.
"When I walk out there, I realize I'm playing the No. 2 player, a real powerhouse. I've got to be on my toes."
Venus, who has dropped only one set, has won 20 straight matches at Wimbledon and is one victory from becoming the first woman to take three straight titles since Steffi Graf in 1991-93.
"I try to put it as if I'm facing other players," Serena said of the challenge of playing Venus. "But, obviously, I'm not. I'm facing the best player in the world right now, and it's going to be difficult."
Tall, strong, fast and athletic, with big serves, relentless ground strokes and tremendous court coverage, the Williams sisters have taken women's tennis to a new level.
"They are better than everybody else," Mauresmo said. "That's it."
How much better?
"Look at the scores," she said. "You can tell by yourself."