As part of Black History Month we asked the Sky Sports tennis experts to pick their top five Williams sisters moments from the US Open.
Marion Bartoli, Karthi Gnanasegaram, Jonathan Overend and presenter Gigi Salmon give their expert analysis on Serena and Venus’ Flushing Meadows highlights.
Between them the sisters won eight US Open titles between 1999 and 2014, with Serena the undoubted Queen of Queens with six singles titles from the 10 finals she has appeared in.
So without further ado, here are the top five moments from the Williams sisters at the US Open…
2022 – Serena’s farewell
Marion Bartoli
Serena Williams lost to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round of the US Open in 2022, which proved to be her final professional match
“For me seeing Serena for more than three decades chasing history and breaking records has always been so inspirational,” said the 2013 Wimbledon champion.
“For her last US Open and her farewell I knew she would go out with that same spirit: Be loud, be heard, be seen. She played every single ball of that US Open with that spirit.
“It was Serena and the whole Arthur Ashe stadium against the player on the other side of the net. It was electric, intense, emotional, grand… it was Serena. Her outfit was probably the most iconic tennis outfit ever worn.
“When it was all over and her whole family came on the court – with Olympia, Alexis, Jill Smoller (all career agent), Venus and all her sisters, Oracene, and she made that speech talking about her dad – I don’t think one person had a dry eye inside the stadium and watching on TV.
“The audience lifting signs saying: ‘We love you Serena’. We got it all there, we all felt part of her team, it’s a night I will never, ever, forget.”
It was Serena and the whole Arthur Ashe stadium against the player on the other side of the net. It was electric, intense, emotional, grand… it was Serena.
2001 final – Serena vs Venus
Karthi Gnanasegaram
Venus Williams (right) defeated her sister Serena 6-2 6-4 to win the US Open title
“Venus and Serena facing each other at the US Open in 2001 has always felt like a pivotal moment for women’s sport. Although they had faced each other in Grand Slams before, this was the first time they had come up against each other in a Grand Slam final and, as someone who played tennis as a child but had only come up against an opponent who was also a person of colour when I faced my sister, it was a final that I watched with great interest.
“That final also caused a fundamental shift in the way the women’s game was portrayed at the US Open. Despite having equal pay at the tournament since 1973, the women’s singles final had always been played in between, or after, the two men’s semi-finals, but it was finally given its own spotlight and a prime-time television slot due to the significance of it being a Venus vs Serena final…another important legacy.
“The final itself may not have been the best we would see between the two but it changed the television landscape and no doubt helped change the representation of tennis across the world but particularly in America.”
2000 – Venus wins US Open
Jonathan Overend
Venus Williams beat Lindsay Davenport in the 2000 US Open final following a stunning summer of success on the WTA Tour
“Simply one of the greatest winning streaks the game has known, the tennis summer of 2000 belonged to only one woman; Venus Williams.
“Having turned 20 just before Wimbledon, she won her first Grand Slam in London before spectacularly rolling through the American hard court summer. Unbeaten through Stanford, San Diego and New Haven, Venus mopped up at the US Open; taking out world No 1 Martina Hingis and her emerging rival Lindsay Davenport in the final.
“It was a summer of total domination: 26 matches unbeaten, dropping just five sets, beating Davenport three times and Monica Seles twice in the five finals. And if that wasn’t enough she then went to Sydney to win the Olympic Games!
“I’m not sure we’ll ever see a three-month period like it and the fact Venus talked subsequently about how a blood disorder disrupted her training that year made it all the more remarkable.
“Venus Williams’ longevity isn’t praised or even talked about enough. To have competed in four different decades, playing this year’s US Open 26 years after her first, is a phenomenal record. And on her list of considerable achievements, that special summer of 2000 – including her debut US Open triumph – stands tall at the top as the most impressive.”
1999 – Serena’s first Slam win
Karthi Gnanasegaram
Serena got the better of top seed Martina Hingis (left) to win the 1999 US Open 6-3 7-6 (7-4)
“What fascinates me about Serena Williams’ remarkable run to winning her first Grand Slam and US Open title in 1999 is how unexpected it was despite what we had already seen from the 17-year-old in the build up to the last major of the year.
“Serena had already declared her tennis credentials with her victories against the world’s best, including my favourite at the time, Monica Seles, but it was the manner of those wins that should have made us take note.
“Her quarter-final victory against Seles showed that Serena was already capable of beating one of the best young, powerful, exciting players on tour with her own explosive brand of tennis.
“An all-teenage final against Martina Hingis wasn’t unusual in the 1990s but most people had assumed Venus would win a Grand Slam title first, so for Serena to defeat a player just a few months older than herself, but with much more big match experience and five Grand Slam titles, was astonishing.
“To think it was only Serena’s seventh major tournament and that she beat Hingis in straight sets was a massive breakthrough, with an added importance as the first black female to win a Grand Slam singles title since Althea Gibson.
“Seeing the joy and surprise spread across Serena’s face after winning match point and when she received the US Open trophy makes me smile every time.”
For Serena to defeat a player just a few months older than herself, but with much more big match experience and five Grand Slam titles, was astonishing.
2014 – Serena wins 18
Gigi Salmon
Serena holds aloft the US Open trophy at the Empire State Building following her victory over Caroline Wozniacki in 2014
“Serena Williams’ 2014 US Open win was an iconic moment for me because of what it stood for, who it put her alongside, and the emotion she showed when the title was won.
“An 18th Grand Slam singles title put Serena alongside Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. It was also her third US Open title in a row and her sixth overall, but it was at the end of a year where she hadn’t made it past the fourth round of a Grand Slam, losing as early as the third round at Wimbledon the Slam before.
“A lot of people said it would be straightforward in the final having not dropped more than three games in a set to get to there. She would face her good friend Caroline Wozniacki, who was in her second Grand Slam final, and Serena had the head to head, but it was what was at stake for Serena – an 18th Grand Slam singles title at the age of 32 – she had said herself at the start of the event that No 18 to her meant ‘legendary’.
“While the tennis itself, especially the first set, wasn’t memorable, the real standout for me was the outpouring of emotion – raw, pure emotion – at the end, lying flat on her back crying when the match was won, choking up during her speech, highlighting what it meant to her.”
