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Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Influential Women List: Tennis Legend Serena Williams


Thu 07 Mar 2019 | 07:24 PM
shawar ibrahim

By: Ibrahim El-Shawarby

CAIRO, March.7 (SEE)- Serena Williams was born on September 26, 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan. Williams is considered by many to be the greatest female tennis player to ever brace the field. She held the top spot in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings numerous times over her stellar career and won a record of 23 Grand Slam titles. Williams began intensive tennis training at age three. She won her first major championship in 1999 and completed the career Grand Slam in 2003.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="960"]Image result for serena williams grand slam wins Serena Williams wins record 23rd Grand Slam at Australian Open 2017[/caption]

Serena and her older sister Venus Williams (born 1980) were groomed for a legendary tennis career from the age of three years old by their father. Serena's father, a former sharecropper from Louisiana determined to see his two youngest girls succeed used what he'd gleaned from tennis books and videos to instruct Serena and Venus on how to play the game. At the age of three, practicing on a court not far from the family's new Compton, California, home, Serena withstood the rigors of daily two-hour practices, which she endured seeing only her dream in front of her.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="590"]Image result for serena williams and venus young Venus and Serena Williams at Wimbledon 2000[/caption]

With their signature style and play, Venus and Serena changed the look of their sport. Their exciting power and athletic ability overwhelmed opponents, and their sense of style and presence made them standout celebrities on the court. In 1999, Serena beat out her sister Venus in their race to the family's first Grand Slam win when she captured the U.S. Open title. It set the stage for a run of high-powered, high-profile victories for both Williams sisters.

In 2008, Serena and Venus teamed up to capture a second women's doubles Olympic gold medal at the Beijing Games. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Serena claimed her fourth overall Olympic gold medal by teaming with sister Venus to defeat Czech Republic stars Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka in women's doubles.

Seeking to add to her trophy collection in the summer of 2015, Williams had to overcome big sister Venus to advance past the fourth round at Wimbledon. A few days later, she defeated Garbine Muguruza in the final to claim her second career "Serena Slam" and become the oldest Grand Slam singles champion in the Open era.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="880"]Image result for serena slam Williams wins Wimbledon to complete "Serena slam"[/caption]

At the 2015 U.S. Open, Williams again squared off with Venus in a tough quarterfinal matchup, this time pulling away in the deciding third set. The outcome left her two wins shy of the calendar year Grand Slam, a feat accomplished by just three women in the sport's history. But it was not to be. In a shocking upset, unseeded Roberta Vinci, ranked No. 43 in the world, dashed Williams' quest by pulling out a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 win in the semifinals. Just hours after her singles win at Wimbledon in 2016, Serena and her older sister Venus won the doubles championship, their sixth Wimbledon win together.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, the Williams sisters experienced a shocking upset when they were bounced out of the first round of women's doubles at the Rio Olympics by Czech duo Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova. The Williams sisters had originally been seeded as no. 1, had an Olympic record of 15-0, and had won gold three times previously. Williams scored a historic victory at the 2017 Australian Open, winning her 23rd Grand Slam title after defeating her sister Venus, 6-4 6-4. With her 23rd win, she surpassed Steffi Graf's total and captured the world number one ranking.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="960"]Image result for serena williams olympics Williams at the 2016 Olympic held in Rio, Brazil[/caption]

Just one year after giving birth, Williams made it to the finals of the 2018 U.S. Open. During the final match against Japan's Naomi Osaka, Williams got in a heated dispute with the umpire after he determined that her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, was giving her hand signals from the stands, so the umpire gave her a coaching violation.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="767"]Image result for serena williams daughter Serena William's Daughter Alexis in her first public appearance[/caption]

At the 2019 Australian Open, the site of her last Grand Slam crown, Williams played her way into a quarterfinal match against Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic. However, she lost despite being up 5-1 in the third set, a stunning collapse for a champion known for her composure on the field.