Williams sisters on course for showdown at Open
"I think my biggest test will be Venus," said Serena.The sisters have played each other in eight Grand Slam events.
When Venus and Serena Williams saw the draw for the US Open, neither of the two-time champions was happy. The sisters, only 15 months apart, are closer than most. They live with each other. Hang out with each other. Practice with each other. Travel with each other.
They don't, however, like playing each other.
Yet that's the course they're on at the Open. Win one more match, and the sisters would meet in the fourth round this weekend. "In order to beat Venus, I'm going to have to be (better)," Serena Williams said Wednesday night after a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Colombia's Catalina Castano. "I think my biggest test will be Venus."
Venus was at courtside for her little sister's match, there to lend encouragement. And maybe do a little scouting. The sisters have played each other eight times at Grand Slam events, but their meetings are usually in the final or semifinal. Because the former No. 1s haven't played much this year, though, they drew lower seeds.
Serena, who is still trying to regain her form after being slowed by an ankle injury following the Australian Open, is No. 8. Venus is seeded 10th, having played only one tournament and two Fed Cup matches since winning Wimbledon.
"I feel like when I'm trying to step it up, I will. I feel like I can get the best out of me," Venus said after beating Maria Kirilenko in straight sets on Wednesday.
"Even today, when (the game) got tighter and she rushed me or attacked me, my game goes up to that next level," she added. "I'm feeling pretty confident in my ability to compete. ... Of course, I feel like I get better and better with each round." Though both have dropped a total of eight games in their first two matches, Venus appears to be in the better shape of the two. Playing in the afternoon when a brisk, swirling wind did sleights of hand with serves and pushed normally certain shots all over the court, Williams was coolly efficient.
She won 70 percent of points off her first serves, and had 24 winners to Kirilenko's four. She also had 25 unforced errors. "It was pretty tough," she said. "I tried to add more spin, take some off the serve, try to get the first serve in, those kind of things. Not go for too much, but of course still play the right shots. Try to move forward and be aggressive."
The tricky conditions didn't produce any major upsets on Wednesday, though Scoville Jenkins, a 19-year-old American playing on a wild card, gave it his best shot. Jenkins lost to French Open champ Rafael Nadal in straight sets, but he put on a good show and served notice that he'll be one to watch in the coming years. Former champ Lleyton Hewitt advanced in straight sets, as did top-seeded Maria Sharapova and No. 4 Kim Clijsters. Compared to her big sister, Serena Williams is much more a work in progress now. She admits she's still rusty, but she was much sharper and had better timing Wednesday than she did only two days earlier.
After breaking Castano and serving to go up 5-2 in the second set, Serena set up match point with a shot that drew a gasp of appreciation from the crowd. Camped at the baseline, she moved forward and hit a gorgeous drop shot that caught Castano completely off-guard.
She followed that up with a backhand winner, her 25th winner in the match, to put Castano away.
"I'm definitely not at my best," Serena Williams said. "Honestly, I'm under 50 percent. But I've won stuff under 50 percent before."
And don't make the mistake of assuming she won't get back to her best. Many have wondered if Serena is more interested in fashion design and acting than tennis, but she bristled at the suggestion. "Quite frankly, I'm tired of people saying I put tennis third and last in my life," she said. "If I did, I wouldn't be here playing. I wouldn't be practicing. I could be at the beach. I could have retired. I could be drinking lemonade with my legs crossed in the sun on the beach. I'm not doing that. I'm playing tennis every day and sweating. I'm not in Saint Tropez.
"Obviously tennis is something I enjoy, or I wouldn't be here." Now the goal is to get to the fourth round. Venus Williams will play 20th-seeded Daniela Hantuchova. Serena must face No. 25 Francesca Schiavone in a rematch of a loss in May that Williams called the worst of her career.
A lethargic Williams was overpowered by Schiavone 7-6 (2), 6-1 on clay in Rome. She withdrew from the French Open the following week. "It's going to be a good match," Williams said. "She obviously beat me last time. I feel as if I'm going to go in there and do what I do best," she said.
