WTA Finals: Venus Williams – Persistence of the Untiring

Venus Williams made a remarkable comeback this year at the proud age of 37. She is now in the Singapore semi-finals.

It’s been a while since Serena Williams gave a timeless laudatory speech on her older sister Venus, chiselled in stone with the words:”There are players standing in front of her in the world rankings. There are players who celebrate more victories, win more titles. But there is no player who is braver than she is,”said the best female player of the tennis era back then,”she is an inspiration for everyone in tennis. The plea, the declaration of family love was aimed at a woman whose career seemed to have ended in 2011 after the outbreak of a serious autoimmune disease (Sjögren’s syndrome). And who, with impressive toughness and tenacity, has meanwhile reappeared at the top of the world, as the protagonist of a more than amazing comeback at the ripe age of 37 years.

And that Venus Ebony Starr Williams, who once created a new era in tennis with her athletics and the speed of her strokes, will now be competing for the title eight years after her last participation in the final phase of the unofficial women’s tennis world championship (WTA finals). The American looked a bit listless on the outside when the championship started in Singapore, but after a false start against Czech Karolina Pliskova, Williams turned up the heat and surprisingly secured a semi-final place in the final group match against fellow favourite and Wimbledon-Queen Garbine Muguruza (Spain). The stamina of Big Sister Venus: Incredible, but true. After all, the first participation of the current World Ranking List Fifth in the season’s traditional closing event was 18 years ago, when the tournament took place in Madison Square Garden, New York. Venus, just 19 years old, only failed in the semi-finals because of a certain Martina Hingis. Steffi Graf had ended her career in that season, mid-August 1999. For the legendary German, too, the older of the two Williams sisters is a phenomenon:”It’s unbelievable what willpower and passion she has in her. She’s just a great athlete.”

The fact that she is still able to spread fear and horror among her formerly dominant rivals, some of whom are higher ranked, traded higher and much younger, was repeatedly demonstrated by her impressive straightforwardness this season. And that’s where it counts most in tennis, in the precious Grand Slam tournaments. Twice in the finals, Australia and Wimbledon, she also reached the semi-finals of the US Open. 22 years after her debut in the travelling circus, Big Sister Venus showed great tennis with her gripping hand, with good nerves and the determination that feared all generations of rivals.

At her best moments, she even showed the sporting inaccessibility that led to five Wimbledon victories. Which, however, was typically reserved for her younger sister Serena. That Serena, the dominant player of this era, became a mother for the first time at the beginning of September. But Venus, the aunt of Serena’s daughter Alexis, represented the filial interests around the globe. In Wimbledon, she also overcame the traumatic experience of a serious traffic accident in which she was involved in June in Florida. There are no words to describe it. I’m shocked,”she said at the beginning of the tournament, depressed. But the tennis matches proved to be a therapy in some way, at least to forget the horrors. Soon it turned out that the athlete was not to blame for the accident.

For veteran tennis observers, it is more than astonishing that Venus is still a professional tour operator. Three or four years ago, many in the industry had speculated whether the troubled Californian would retire – not least because the serious autoimmune disease with its severe exhaustion disrupted training operations and caused many breaks,”he says,” There are many lows, and there are many doubts. But we must not allow ourselves to be swept away,”says Venus Williams,” all of us in the Williams family have survived so much in our lives, and that’s what steels us.

Venus is a fighter like no other,”says America’s former tennis great Chris Evert,”Venus is like no other,”says America’s former tennis great Chris Evert,” she is a role model for every young athlete. Grand Slam tournament, surpassing the record set by Amy Frazier. I’m surprised myself that I’m still there,”says the Californian, who may be able to set the final exclamation mark behind this tennis season,” honestly, I didn’t think that I would come back every day either. But here I am.”