How sweet! Venus Williams opened up and gave us a rare look into her emotions as she showered praises on her baby sister Serena as they make their way back to Indian Wells -- the place that gave them one of the biggest emotional scars in life....
Venus and Serena WIlliams have always had an enviable sibling relationship. So supportive and so close to each other. Now, big sis Venus has some words of praise for her baby sis. And it all stems from how Serena handled her return to the Indian Wells tournament in California.
Last March, Serena returned to play the Indian Wells tournament after purposely shutting it out for 14 years. Back in 2001, Venus had to pull out of the tournament due to a knee injury just minutes before her and Serena's doubles match. The crowd boo'd them as they exited the court. The next day, during Serena's singles matches, she was boo'd mercilessly. The sisters boycotted the tournament ever since. Until now.
Serena returned last year and received cheers and praise, even after she herself had to pull out at the last minute due to injury. Venus decided to sit our still. In an essay written for The Players' Tribune, Venus explains why she's stayed quiet about just how hurt her feelings were (keep in mind the sisters had suffered racist treatment from a few different crowds around the world over the years). This one stung.
...I might even be the more competitive of the two of us. I think that Serena’s ability to lay everything bare on the court allows her to work through her emotions more easily. For me, though, it can be a more conflicted process. My quietness lets me stew a little in my thoughts. And once I feel a certain way about something, my competitiveness can make me a little slower to come around to the other side.
Venus talks about the how emotionally taxing the situation was saying:
I remember the hurt I felt. I remember my confusion and disappointment and anger. I remember how the coverage of it at the time didn’t seem concerned with me and Serena, as people, at all — but rather only with the story itself. And with the version of the story that would get the most attention, regardless of the truth. I remember feeling that I had been wronged, and that I had done nothing wrong. I remember feeling that I had unfairly gotten the brunt of the blame for a bad situation.
And I remember leaving Indian Wells in 2001 feeling like I wasn’t welcome there.
Not feeling welcome somewhere is a hard memory to let go of — at any age. At 20? It’s almost impossible. And so that’s what I did. I held onto it.
Venus also talked about how Serena recently filled the big sister role as she was the one teaching her about forgiveness:
"...Seeing Serena welcomed with open arms last year at Indian Wells, that I think I fully and truly realized what being the big sister means.
It means that, for all of the things I did first, and all of the times when I paved the way for Serena, the thing I can be most proud of is this time.
When Serena paved the way for me.
...After almost 30 years of playing this sport, I’ve learned something. I’ve learned that, no matter what happens, or happened … or where you are, or where you’ve been … at the end of the day: tennis is tennis. It’s always, always tennis. And there’s nothing better.
Who taught me that?
Actually, funny story — it was the greatest player in the world.
I’m her big sister."
Venus is set to return to Indian Wells this month. We'll be cheering for her!
