Following Venus Williams’ 7-5, 6-4 win over sister Serena in the Wimbledon final Saturday, NBC commentator John McEnroe said what many viewers were probably thinking.
“It had the makings of an absolute classic.”
Yes, it had the makings, particularly early on. But in the end, it was another good-but-not-great match between the two sisters, who again showed their penchant for tremendous shotmaking coupled with untimely errors.
To be fair, it was probably the highest-quality of the three all-Williams matches at Wimbledon, and at least this time Venus emerged victorious, after having fallen to her sister five consecutive times in Grand Slam finals, including both times in London.
The head-to-head matches - there have now been 16 of them, with each sister winning eight - always have had a strange aura about them. It’s clear that Venus and Serena enjoy playing one another in tournaments about as much as a dog enjoys trips to the vet. Venus, in particular, never has seemed to play her best against her younger sibling in big matches.
But Saturday, for perhaps the first time, it looked like Venus truly wanted to come out on top. She was the better player for the majority of the match, as she hit the ball harder, won nearly every point at net and viciously attacked Serena’s subpar second serve. No female tennis player ever has belted the ball like Venus, who set a record Saturday with a 129 mph serve. Only in the first few games, when Serena broke serve immediately and won 10 of the first 11 points, did Venus look like the weaker player.
Serena, of course, did nothing to ruin her status as a top-five force on the women’s side. She will be a favorite at the U.S. Open, where she has won twice. And she will be the biggest draw Tuesday, when she makes her debut as a member of the new Washington Kastles of World TeamTennis.
But Venus, with her fifth Wimbledon title, can now stake her claim as the best female grass court player of her generation. With Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters and Lindsay Davenport all either gone or on their way out, it’s not too far-fetched to think that she can tie Steffi Graf with seven Wimbledon crowns.
On the men’s side Sunday, top-seeded Roger Federer seeks his sixth straight title at Wimbledon. But many pundits predict a tough loss against Rafael Nadal, the man who bested him in straight sets at the French Open last month.
Federer is brilliant on grass, arguably the best in history, and he has looked tremendous over the last two weeks.
But Nadal took Federer to five sets in last year’s Wimbledon final, and this year the lefty Spaniard is showing a much-improved grass game. He’s serving harder than ever and is hitting the ball deeper and with more spin while also displaying a solid net game. Add in his ridiculous intensity, and it’s clear Nadal has distinguished himself as one of the greatest competitors the sport has ever seen.
Federer will not relinquish the title with ease, but there’s little doubt that Nadal will once again give him all he can handle and possibly more.
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