Just between them

It's no secret the Williams sisters are the best, but will they finally prove it to each other?

[AP photo] Venus, left, and Serena Williams will meet in Grand Slam final for the third time in four events. They are also doubles partners.

SHELTON E-mail: Click here Archive

By GARY SHELTON, Times Sports Columnist

© St. Petersburg Times
published July 5, 2002

WIMBLEDON, England -- By now, you know how good Venus Williams is. You have seen her power. You have seen her will.

But does Serena know how good Venus is? Really?

By now, you know how good Serena Williams is, too. You have seen her speed. You have seen her touch.

But does Venus know how good Serena is? Truly?

To the rest of us, the Williams sisters proved themselves long ago. You are talking about the best player in women's tennis and the second-best player. The only debate is which one is which.

Frankly, it's about time we found out.

Frankly, it's about time they found out.

By now, no one debates the greatness of Venus and Serena. What we would like to see, however, is greatness between Venus and Serena. So far, they have not brought out the magic in one another.

Against everyone else, Venus and Serena have been great players, vicious competitors, merciless warriors. Against each other, they've played a slap-and-giggle, arms-limitation form of the game that has been barely watchable.

Limp rallies, tentative approaches, invisible intensity. As much as anything, the uninspired play has contributed to the continuing whispers the outcome might be orchestrated.

So to the surprise of no one, here we are again. Venus, 22, plays Serena, 20, in Saturday's Wimbledon final. It's the third time in the past four majors the sisters have reached the final. From the look of it, it's a trend that could continue for years.

Is that a good thing? We'll see.

If the dominance of the Williams sisters is to overcome the familiarity, then they must be great players against each other, too. They must clash like siblings in the back yard. They must stop worrying about the other's bruised feelings and worry about their own. They must come with the same firepower they bring against the rest of the WTA Tour.

For Venus and Serena, this will be the ultimate measure of their legacies. How did they do against each other? They have accomplished everything else.

Never has a family owned a sport like this. Never have siblings dominated this way. The tour is lucky the three older sisters, Lyndrea, Isha and Yetunde, didn't take to the game. Otherwise, no one else might see another semifinal, either.

The Williams aren't just the best players in women's tennis. They're the best by a lot. Venus lost one set on her way to the final. Serena didn't lose any. Serena will be the new No.1. Venus is the two-time Wimbledon champion.

"We both like to win," Venus said. "I'm not used to losing. It's quite the same with her."

Imagine Alexander the Great weeping not because he had no more worlds to conquer, but because his brother, Ned the Great, had conquered even more. Imagine Michael Jordan with a brother who was just as good. Imagine Muhammad Ali's tougher brother.

Greatness, like lightning, doesn't often strike the same place twice. Oh, you can think of a lot of families fortunate enough to get more than one member into professional sports. Usually, however, the result isn't greatness.

Even when greatness occurs, it seems to favor one brother: Henry Aaron over Tommy, Joe DiMaggio over Dom and Vince, John McEnroe over Patrick, Lee Roy Selmon over Dewey and Lucious, Chris Evert over Jeannie, Cal Ripken over Billy, Michael Corleone over Fredo.

The list goes on. One way or the other, one sibling dominates the other.

Rarely will you see two players from the same family become legends. The Esposito brothers, Phil and Tony, are in the hockey Hall of Fame. The Spinks brothers, Michael and Leon, were world champion boxers.

Never, however, have the best player on the planet, and the second, come from the same dinner table. From here on out, their careers should be shaped around trying to prove their dominance over each other, not merely everyone else.

Serena or Venus? Venus or Serena? Who is better?

Even Serena doesn't sound sure. She was pleased as she could be to find out the new rankings will say she is No.1 in the world, and she said she deserves it.

But a few minutes later, when talking about her sister, she said, "She's the best player in the world."

If one sister isn't, the other is. There are no other candidates left. No one has the speed, the skill, the power.

Take the semifinals, for instance. Justine Henin tested Venus in last year's Wimbledon final and bounced Monica Seles from the tournament in two sets. She won the first two games of the match.

After that, Venus beat her so badly it was painful to watch. At one point, Williams won 10 of 11 games, and Henin was helpless.

"She didn't let me play," Henin said.

Then there was Amelie Mauresmo, who played the match of her life against Jennifer Capriati the day before. Same deal. Mauresmo was plugging along just fine, tied at 2. Then Serena turned out the lights. She won five consecutive games, and it was all over but the flag waving.

"I couldn't do nothing," Mauresmo said.

No one can. Siblings haven't been this clearly ranked No.1 and No.2 since Frank and Jesse James robbed trains.

"It's one in a million," Serena said. "It's tough enough to raise one great player. That's why I appreciate my parents so much. They've raised two. No matter what people say about my dad and my mom, they've made some champions."

Is it too much to ask, then, for them to play that way against each other? The worst match Venus has played lately was against Serena in the French Open final. The worst Serena has played? Same match.

Perhaps it is because they are so close emotionally, because they pull so desperately for each other to succeed. Perhaps they lose the focus that seems to intimidate other players. Regardless, no one has volleyed about the word "greatness" when they have met.

More than other tournaments, Wimbledon should bring out the best in them. Venus has won it twice. Serena has called it her No.1 goal. Only Serena can stand up to her sister's power. Only Venus can match her sister's speed.

Serena: "This is going to be the most difficult surface for me to face her serve. She runs very well. I'm going to have to hit two or three, maybe four more balls that she would get that no one else will get."

Venus: "She's a great competitor. Big serve. Lots of power. Great forehand. She can do anything. A game pretty much similar to mine."

So let's see it. Let's see great points. Let's see great shots. It isn't too much to expect. We have, after all, seen their greatness.

Now they need to see each other's.

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