Billie Jean King recalls meeting Venus and Serena Williams for the first time

Former WTA legend Billie Jean King has recalled her first meeting with Venus and Serena Williams 34 years ago.

The Williams sisters are two of the biggest stars in the history of women's tennis, breaking out on tour in the late 90s. While Venus has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, Serena has won 23 and is only one behind all-time leader Margaret Court. The Williams sisters have won two mixed doubles titles and together, they are 14-0 in doubles Grand Slam finals.

Billie Jean King first met the Williams sisters at a Domino's Pizza World Team Tennis clinic in Long Beach in 1988. Venus was eight at the time, while Serena was seven.

King shared a picture of the Williams sisters during her second meeting with them, four years after her first one.

"They were as impressive then as they are now," King captioned her post.

Thirty years after that meeting with King, the Williams sisters have still not retired. However, they have been out of action for almost a year. While Serena has not played since sustaining a leg injury at Wimbledon last year, Venus hasn't played since Chicago 2021.

Both sisters are likely to return to action sometime this year, with Serena likely to do so at Wimbledon, quashing speculation about their impending retirements.

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Venus and Serena Williams promote their father's biopic King Richard

Netflix's Critics Choice Awards After Party at Lumiere Restaurant, Fairmont Century City Plaza

Venus and Serena Williams have been busy during their downtime as they rehabilitate from injury.

The two sisters were recently promoting King Richard, a biopic of their father. The movie, starring Will Smith as Richard Williams, traces the early years of the Williams sisters before they became behemoths of the women's game. For his portrayal of Richard Williams, Smith bagged an Oscar award for Best Actor.

In an interview with Insider, Serena said that the film did a good job of depicting her and sister Venus' journeys to the zenith of women's tennis.

"‘King Richard’ had a perfect ending with Venus on the tennis court. Venus goes in her direction, and I go in my direction. It's two completely different stories. I had a rough journey. I didn't do well, and then I did. It's a lot of drama. It's a telenovela," Serena Williams said.