Category — Venus

My favorite tennis tournament kicked off tonight with Novak Djokovic, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams all prevailing in their 1st-round matches at the Australian Open. Of course Serena is the favorite on the women’s side. And unless someone has an answer for her, she will probably have her way and capture another title. We’re betting on it. But before we crown homegirl plenty of matches are to be played.
The tournament continues through Jan. 26. ESPN and the Tennis Channel are broadcasting coverage.

I love the 1st 2 lines: “I liked Venus better. Not that you had to pick one, in a John vs. Paul sort of way.”
Serena Williams is playing her best tennis. She smoking the opposition at the U.S. Open like Marley smoked trees. Writer Brian Phillips pens a good read about Serena’s current play and how she and Venus were perceived when they 1st rocked the lilly-white tennis world. As much as I like it, I wonder what if a black writer had written something similar and the outrage it would have produced.
Grantland.com

Didn’t know they still sold Mores.
For years, plenty of folks, many of them media types, made fun of Richard Williams. How could this guy, from Compton no less, teach his girls to become the best in the world in the lilly-white world of professional tennis? Well, we know the rest of the story.
Recommended reading: Howard Bryant’s piece on Richard and his daughters, Serena and Venus, as the U.S. Open kicks off. Richard is finally getting the last laugh.
ESPN The Magazine

We couldn’t even get through the opening round of Wimbledon without it claiming a big fish. Venus Williams was smoked today by Russian Elena Vesnina, 6-1, 6-3.
N.Y. Times

It took a while, but Maria Sharapova completed her run of a Grand Slam by capturing the French Open today.
SB Nation

Enjoying our final late night doses of the Australian Open.
Kim Clijsters is in the semis again of our favorite tennis tournament. Clijsters defeated top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, who is still looking to reel in a major title, in straight sets tonight to advance.
AP

Defending champ Serena Williams and sister Venus go down in flames today in the 4th round at Wimbledon. Also, top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, who is still searching for her 1st Grand Slam title, is eliminated.
AP

Give the Williams’ sisters credit. They know sex sells. That’s just 1 reason we’ve missed their presence on the tennis courts. But with Wimbledon kicking off today, Venus unveiled her latest fashion statement. We yawned on this 1, but those white shorts immediately brought back sweet memories of all those big-ass old-lady bloomers flapping in the wind on clothes lines all around Boley. I’m getting all warm and fuzzy visualizing it again.
But we can’t fault Venus for this choice (she probably gets bad advice too) since the fashion police at Wimbledon are pretty strict and limit her creative juices. That’s the only reason to explain why she’s wearing those yellow shorts underneath those boxers, uh, shorts.
Still…
It tickles us the critics who frequently target the sisters, particularly those rags in England. Click below to read why they’ve got their panties in a bunch again.
Us? We figured this was an ideal time to highlight some of Venus’ more eye-popping outfits. We’ll be tossing and turning in our sleep tonight with anticipation of what Serena will unveil tomorrow.
Cheers!
Daily Mail

We could see this coming a mile away. It’s unfortunate, but Venus Williams wasn’t going to win the Aussie Open anyway.
N.Y. Times

There were 2 pivotal moments in Kim Clijsters’ semifinal victory over Venus Williams Friday at the U.S. Open. The 1st one occurred in a tiebreaker in the 2nd set, when the defending champ ripped Venus to shreds, 7-2, to force a 3rd set.
In the 5th game of the 3rd set, Clijsters lobbed a shot over Williams, who had charged to the net, but as Williams retreated, she gave up on the shot, which landed just inside the line, for a 40-30 advantage. Clijsters clinched the set and went on to capture the match, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.
She will face Vera Zvonareva, who claimed a straight-sets victory (6-4, 6-3) over top seed Caroline Wozniacki, for the championship on Saturday. Clijsters defeated Serena Williams for the Open title last year.