Williams' sisters come of age

Bruce Emond ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Nusa Dua, Bali   |  Tue, 11/03/2009 1:07 PM  |  Sports

Even for the most grudging holdouts, Sunday's final of the WTA Sony Ericsson Tour Championships in Doha was proof positive of the greatness of the Williams' sisters.

It was not a pretty start, with the first few games and eventually the first set passing in a blur of hit-and-miss tennis, a reminder of past sputtering encounters between them. The sisters, both nursing injuries, seemed tentative, especially Venus, who lost this year's Wimbledon final to the younger Serena. While Ali and Foreman had their "Rumble in the Jungle", a fitting description of this, it seemed, would have been the "Drubbing in the Desert" after Serena took the first set 6-2.

By the end, it was a whole new ball game. Venus, shaking off the left knee injury that left her hobbled by the end of her semifinal against Jelena Jankovic, lifted her play. Then followed scintillating and engaging rallies; yes, it was a show of power by both women, but they were not averse to coming in to the net on a sliced backhand or hitting angled strokes.

Serena eventually held out to win the championship in a tie break with a pounding forehand crosscourt, and also reclaimed the world No. 1 spot. In the match, the Williams' sisters showed for once and for all that when they are "on", when their shots are flowing, their pounding serves hitting the mark and they are in the right frame of mind - and even sometimes when they are not - nobody can keep apace with them.

Of course, it remains to be seen what will happen when former world No. 1 Justine Henin returns to the tour at the Australian Open.

The tour has dealt with its fair share of turbulence in the past year, from the debate about Dinara Safina's number one ranking, Serena's outburst at a lineswoman at the US Open and the desultory form of several players, especially Ana Ivanovic. But there have also been some great stories, from Jelena Dokic's fairy-tale run at the Australian Open, Kim Clijsters' remarkable comeback at the US Open, the emergence of young stars such as Sabine Lisicki and Yanina Wickmayer, and the return of Kimiko Date-Krumm at the age of 39 (Lisicki, Wickmayer and Date-Krumm are all competing at this week's Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions in Bali).

Among it all the standouts have been the Williams. They still deal with a lot of flak from the media and followers of the game, particularly the snipes about Serena selectively picking the tournaments that matter to her, her attitude, the role of their father, Richard. But it's their play that silences the critics, and the underlying racism that fuels some of the negativity against them.

They have been ambassadors in opening up the sport to a new generation, who, without the mind-set of tennis as a "genteel" sport - when the serve was merely a means to get the ball into play - marvel at their power and prowess. And while Serena's behavior and comments are sometimes questionable, Venus has been the epitome of class, including during her winner's speech earlier this year in Dubai, where she alluded to the fact that Shahar Peer of Israel had been unable to get a visa for the tournament (Peer is also playing in Bali).

Sunday night was a showcase for the Williams' sisters, but also for the sport of tennis. It showed how far the game has come, and also how much more needs to be done, by other players in reaching their standard and also in the sport's continued efforts to reach out to minorities. Those are questions to be answered later; for the time being, we should acknowledge their remarkable contribution to the game.

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