Serena Williams has commented on one of her best memories from her doubles career with sister Venus. In one of their matches, Serena recalled how they lost four consecutive points because she couldn’t stop laughing, while Venus, who is typically calm, was visibly frustrated on the court.
Serena recently sat down with Glamour Magazine to debunk "tennis myths" in a candid YouTube video. One of the "myths" was:
"Singles is harder than doubles."
Serena expressed the opposite view. The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion felt that doubles was harder for her because she did not want to let her sister Venus down.
"I think for me doubles may have been a little bit harder because I never wanted to let my partner down, which was Venus," Serena Williams said (at 2:00).
She explained that in singles, any mistake she made was solely her responsibility, but in doubles, a mistake impacted her partner as well.
"That was a lot of pressure for me because I never wanted to let her down," she added.
When Serena was asked to point out her favorite memories from her doubles career, her immediate response was:
"Impossible."
She went on to mention their three Olympic gold medals, but surprisingly, her favorite doubles memory wasn’t a victory. Instead, it was an unexpected moment during a match when Venus, who is usually calm, lost her cool.
"One of my best memory in doubles is actually us losing and Venus is losing her mind on the court 'cause she's so calm. And I was laughing the whole time and we lost like four points 'cause I couldn't stop laughing," Serena said.
Serena and Venus played 14 women's doubles Grand Slam finals as partners and won all 14. Their first title was the 1999 French Open and their 14th was the 2016 Wimbledon Championships.
"I love Venus, I don’t want our lives to ever be separate" - Serena Williams on her bond with her sister
Serena Williams was named in the 2024 class of the Glamour Magazine Women of the Year. She received congratulatory messages from sister Venus Williams and husband Alexis Ohanian.
As part of the honor, Williams was also interviewed by Glamour, during which she opened up about the love she has for her sister.
"Sisters are so special. Some things never change. I don’t even want to not be codependent with her [Venus Williams]. I love her. I don’t want our lives to ever be separate," Williams said.
Further, she explained how tennis can feel isolating, with players on the road for most of the year. She leaned heavily on her sister Venus for support, as they shared not only the experience of success, but also their unique challenges as Black athletes.
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