Venus Williams and Serena Williams walked onto a Grand Slam doubles court together for the first time in four years at this year's US Open, a reunion that gave three veteran tennis commentators reason to revisit one of the sport's most extraordinary sibling rivalries.
Two Careers, One Extraordinary Story
Tennis commentator Russell Fuller sat down with Jonathan Overend and Iain Carter, both of whom held the tennis correspondent role before him, for a wide-ranging conversation about the Williams sisters' careers spanning three decades. The discussion traced Venus' rapid rise to the top of the sport before her younger sister Serena arrived on tour, and how Serena's dominance over the years that followed came to feel almost inevitable. The trio also spoke about Serena's sometimes spiky relationship with the media over the course of her career.
Finals That Fizzled, and a Doubles Partnership That Dominated
Much of the conversation focused on the many finals the sisters played against each other, several of which felt anti-climactic, along with the suspicion that has long surrounded some of those matches over whether they were pre-arranged. The commentators also discussed how dominant Venus and Serena were as a doubles pairing, a dominance underlined by their reunion in doubles at this year's US Open after a four-year gap.
Holding All Four Slams, and a Fierce Will to Win
The three also revisited the period when Serena won and held all four Grand Slam titles at once, having beaten Venus in every one of those finals along the way. They discussed Serena's relentless will to win and debated whether she was, at times, a particularly bad loser.
Health Struggles, a New Coach and a Record in Sight
Both sisters faced health problems in 2011, a period the commentators discussed at length. The conversation also covered Serena's partnership with coach Patrick Mouratoglou and her pursuit of Margaret Court's record for Grand Slam singles titles.
A Rare One-on-One With Serena
Fuller also recalled his only one-on-one interview with Serena Williams, which took place in 2018.
