Tennis
The impotence of the great Williams at Wimbledon. Collapsed on the grass under frightened cries
The great American started powerfully at Wimbledon. But the cursed weed ruined a tough match for Williams.
In women’s tennis, more than a dozen athletes who led the world tour have already changed. The heroines of the beginning of the century ended their careers, young girls go to the top, Iga Sventek crushes everyone at the main starts.
But, as if not noticing these changes, one of the Williams sisters still plays at major tournaments. Venus showed up at Wimbledon, who won five times on these courts, and for the first time she did it in the last century.
She started the match against Svitolina excellently, but the slippery English grass spoiled the champion’s mood.
Incredible Purpose
Williams’ eldest sister is 43, while the average age of the top athletes on the tour is now around 30.
But neither Venus nor Serena are stopped by these barriers. Both of them stubbornly apply for the Grand Slam tournaments, collect a full house in the stands, improving their image and advertising potential. However, from a sporting point of view, these attempts are hardly worth taking seriously.
In 2020, Venus lost in the first round of the three Grand Slams she competed in. The following season, she advanced to the second round at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and again flew out in the opening game at Roland Garros. Then a year-long pause, which ended with participation in the American series of tournaments on hard. In all, she performed unsuccessfully – defeats in the first matches, including her native US Open.
The rhetorical question: why the four-time Olympic champion and seven-time winner of the Grand Slam tournaments still go to court will remain unanswered. She started this season in New Zealand, defeating compatriot Kathy Volonez and losing in the second round to Chinese Zhu Lin at the WTA-250 tournament.
Well, then again a six-month pause, defeat in the first round in the Netherlands, in the second round in Birmingham and confirmation of participation in the beloved Wimbledon.
Accident
In the first round, Elina Svitolina, who also received a wild card, became Venus’ rival. The 28-year-old Ukrainian, who became a mother last year, started the match poorly, immediately allowing Williams to make a break. Having led the score 2-0, the American made a double mistake on her serve, which allowed Elina to earn a break point. In the most important draw, Venus went to the net, but she could not play the ball, as she awkwardly stumbled and collapsed on the grass with a terrible scream.
At that moment, fear was visible in the eyes of the spectators, and frightened cries were heard from the stands. The American had a wounded right knee, so there was a risk of recurrence of the injury.
The referee and Svitolina immediately rushed to the rescue, the doctors ran out, but the main character of the situation lay down a little more and … continued the game. Venus didn’t even take a medical time-out. True, the game was already lost – Elina made a reverse break.
The next time, on the pitch of the American, Svitolina will again make a break, which will determine the fate of the set – 6:4. Taking advantage of the pause, Williams nevertheless took the help of a doctor, but this did not have positive consequences. In the second set, the Ukrainian immediately made a break, then another one and without nerves brought the match to victory – 6:4, 6:3.
Moving along the grid, the American refused to shake hands with the judge, which, to put it mildly, looked strange. But, apparently, Venus was offended by the referee, who at the end of the second game after watching the challenge decided to count Svitolina’s point. And Williams insisted on a replay.
Will he play until the age of 50?
In an emotional post-match press conference, Venus said she was shocked by the result as she was in good shape before and during the game:
Yes, it’s not fun right now. I felt that I was in great shape before this tournament and in great shape in the match. At the moment, it’s all very shocking,” she says.
After the game, the disappointed American admitted that she did not agree with the referee, and therefore decided defiantly to refuse to shake hands. But the most interesting thing is that even another early departure from the Grand Slam tournament did not affect Venus’ decision to continue playing. And, perhaps, up to 50 years:
“Nobody has done this before, so if there is anyone who could do it, it would be me,” said the American.
Source: Sportbox
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.