Power, athleticism and an attacking mindset: the Williams sisters raised the bar on court and brought diverse appeal off it
stood two wins away from one of the ultimate achievements in her sport, it all seemed to be falling apart. For 10 months between 2002 and 2003, she had established a level of dominance not seen since the greats of the previous century. On a warm January night in Melbourne, though, she was on the brink of a crushing defeat, trailing Kim Clijsters 1-5 in the third set of their 2003 Australian Open semi-final.
With constant demonstrations of her physical and mental fortitude, Williams changed the face of the sport alongside her sister, setting the bar in the sky and forcing the world to try to keep up. While Venus always drew power from her height, Serena took time to fill out her frame, which would play a defining role in her growth. In lieu of Venus’s range, she learned how to drag opponents off the court with sharp angles, to smartly construct attacking points and, when all else failed, to hustle until the end. In 1999, aged 17, she truly began to harness her power, which combined with her nous for destructive consequences.
Dominance did not immediately follow. It was Venus who began to rack up major titles first, winning four of six grand slam titles across 2000 and 2001. Then Serena simply rose above her sister’s top level. By 2003, she was one of the greatest movers of all time and one of the most destructive ball-strikers. Her serve was smooth, reliable and vicious. As she and Venus also rolled through doubles titles, she had developed a complete game.
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