When Wimbledon Got Real Interesting (2)

Two Sisters and Their Dad

No one in the world of tennis had ever seen anything like those two girls. Their father had raised them to become champions, and never looked back. Richard Williams even drew up a 78 page plan for how to make it happen - before they were born. From the time each turned 4 1/2, they were out there slamming away at tennis balls, doing drills, listening to their dad, and inching their way upward.

"White people thought tennis was 'their house'. I wanted my girls to be in that house too, so I brought them up to practice hard and play hard no matter what anybody thought."

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mmoorr/7750293920/

This was no easy dream. Mr. Williams needed someplace the girls could have access to tennis courts. He moved the family to Compton, California both for the free courts and to "toughen the girls up". In a recent NPR interview Williams described those tennis courts as "run-down, filled with gangs - Crips, Bloods, and everything in between." He'd clear them out, using fists and other sundry 'items' (which the interviewer politely declined to discuss). Then he told the girls: "Alright, get on out there and practice." And they did.

The two little girls just kept on playing, gang or no gang. Two champions. Two sisters. They were each other's biggest fans, and greatest competitors. 

I remember the first time I saw them play at Wimbledon. Something in the way they attacked a ball made me pity any hapless opponent. If it were me, I would be afraid. Very afraid. In fact, sometimes they ended up playing each other, just because they had beat everyone else along the way. 

Venus and Serena are well known for their strict loyalty. If one sister looses, she is known to sit in the stands rooting for the other. Even if her sister is the one who beat her.

Let's just look at their Women's Wimbledon Single's titles: a Williams won Wimbledon in each of the following years:

2000 - Venus

2001 - Venus

2002 - Serena

2003 - Serena

2005 - Venus

2007 - Venus

2008 - Venus

2009 - Serena

2010 - Serena

2012 - Serena

I am amazed and mesmerized by this list. And Serena's name can be found on the 2014 roster, inching its way upward once again. I don't know what the experts are projecting, but something tells me the name of Williams still bears watching. 

She might be far from the tennis courts of Compton, but she is still the toughest game in town.

Richard Williams

See you along the way!

the SconeLady

P.S. Dear Readers, see if you can find an interview of Mr. Williams somewhere on the airwaves. He is interesting! (and perhaps unexpected..). 

photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/rio81/2649959457/">easilyimpressed</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/">cc</a>

photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mmoorr/7750293920/">Flickmor</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/">cc</a>