Post by Traveling Man on Sept 3, 2007 12:09:34 GMT -5
Bud Collins: Sisters are game again
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Sisters are game again
By Bud Collins | September 3, 2007
NEW YORK - Rumblings on the Flushing Meadows campus tell us that the two-woman sorority, Phi Jamma Slamma, is looking to take over a game called tennis again.
Just when you thought the Sisters Sledgehammer - Serena and Venus Williams - were distracted and indifferent, and had lost the zing in their swing, trading it for bling and social fling - they vroom-vroom-vroom back onto the scene hungering for more major championships.
What happened yesterday at the US Open sent a shiver (despite steady sunshine) through the rest of the female cast. Were Venus and Serena reestablishing their axis of anxiety that used to humble and terrify their colleagues while the two of them stockpiled trophies in the sorority house?
It was Williams Day at the Open, their fourth-round victories in the concrete canyon, Ashe Stadium, sandwiched around one by Rafael Nadal.
On either side, Serena, then Venus, were as easy for their foes to swallow as stale bread. Those weren't just defeats they handed out. They were punishments that took them into the quarterfinals. Serena led off by pummeling France's unorthodox Marion Bartoli, 6-3, 6-4, in 76 minutes. Bartoli has had enough of the Sisters for a while, remembering that Venus had flattened her in the recent Wimbledon final.
Venus, who had jolted Ana Ivanovic in their Wimbledon semifinal, 6-2, 6-4, did another number on the Serbian teenager yesterday, 6-4, 6-2, in 80 minutes.
The Sisters seemed to be singing that old Broadway refrain, "Anything you can do I can do better." Their swift-footed thunder-and-lightning offenses are back in gear, both having fully recovered from injuries.
Bartoli, who swings with both hands on both sides, could have used a couple more of them. She sighed, "I almost couldn't return Serena's serve. She's a great server. When it's coming 125 miles or something, I don't even see the ball coming up. I can't see whether it's middle or wide serve it's coming so fast. At 5-4, 30-all in the second set, she served two aces. That's it . . . it's finished."
Serena had 10 aces and was bludgeoning her forehands, scoring 14 of her 32 winners on that side.
"I need match play," she said. "I'm getting better with every match. I wanted to play after Wimbledon, but I couldn't. I don't know how I played there [after falling on her left thumb, incurring a severe sprain, impeding her two-fisted backhand]. I had to have the thumb in a splint without moving it. A hand specialist told me it's common with football players. They never see an injury like this outside of football.
"But now the pain is gone. I'm fine," she said.
Ivanovic said, "I was hoping to slow things down, get into rhythm, try to make longer rallies. But Venus is very aggressive and she doesn't give you many chances. She plays very fast. Every time I tried to slow down, she would step in and hit even harder. She's very tough."
Ivanovic held three break points for a 2-0 lead, but never saw another. Venus, banging winners on the run (11 forehands), was all over her adversary, completing the Sisters' scorched asphalt afternoon.
Wearing a money green dress, Venus was looking forward to facing Serena in the semis. That's the goal. "It would be awesome - to have a Williams in the final, and a Williams as an American champion. Either one of us."
But first she will have to beat another Serb, Jelena Jankovic, and Serena must overcome No. 1 Justine Henin, her conqueror at the French and Wimbledon. I feel the Sisters will do it, and Venus will grab the title.
A Williams championship would be the sorority's 15th major. Serena has eight, Venus six. Since launching their collection of majors with 17-year-old Serena's US Open of 1999, only two years, 2004 and 2006, have been barren of at least one. Serena's French, Wimbledon, and US in 2002 was the largest haul.
Venus said, "I was in a zone today. I didn't hear anything. You know, I never lost my desire. But I had to get healthy and find my game. But I think that builds character and makes wins a lot sweeter. The funny thing is I never felt I played well at Wimbledon. Finally I looked at films this week, and was, like, 'Oh I played very well.' Finally, the realization came."
She said she sent an e-mail to Serena, advising her on playing Bartoli. "I saw her before my match and she gave me advice. We do that all the time."
As ever, the sisters are tight. Phi Jamma Slamma is entering a new phase, and the message is don't walk on the sorority house's grass.http://cache.boston.com/bonzai-fba/F...y_end_icon.gif
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sisters are game again
By Bud Collins | September 3, 2007
NEW YORK - Rumblings on the Flushing Meadows campus tell us that the two-woman sorority, Phi Jamma Slamma, is looking to take over a game called tennis again.
Just when you thought the Sisters Sledgehammer - Serena and Venus Williams - were distracted and indifferent, and had lost the zing in their swing, trading it for bling and social fling - they vroom-vroom-vroom back onto the scene hungering for more major championships.
What happened yesterday at the US Open sent a shiver (despite steady sunshine) through the rest of the female cast. Were Venus and Serena reestablishing their axis of anxiety that used to humble and terrify their colleagues while the two of them stockpiled trophies in the sorority house?
It was Williams Day at the Open, their fourth-round victories in the concrete canyon, Ashe Stadium, sandwiched around one by Rafael Nadal.
On either side, Serena, then Venus, were as easy for their foes to swallow as stale bread. Those weren't just defeats they handed out. They were punishments that took them into the quarterfinals. Serena led off by pummeling France's unorthodox Marion Bartoli, 6-3, 6-4, in 76 minutes. Bartoli has had enough of the Sisters for a while, remembering that Venus had flattened her in the recent Wimbledon final.
Venus, who had jolted Ana Ivanovic in their Wimbledon semifinal, 6-2, 6-4, did another number on the Serbian teenager yesterday, 6-4, 6-2, in 80 minutes.
The Sisters seemed to be singing that old Broadway refrain, "Anything you can do I can do better." Their swift-footed thunder-and-lightning offenses are back in gear, both having fully recovered from injuries.
Bartoli, who swings with both hands on both sides, could have used a couple more of them. She sighed, "I almost couldn't return Serena's serve. She's a great server. When it's coming 125 miles or something, I don't even see the ball coming up. I can't see whether it's middle or wide serve it's coming so fast. At 5-4, 30-all in the second set, she served two aces. That's it . . . it's finished."
Serena had 10 aces and was bludgeoning her forehands, scoring 14 of her 32 winners on that side.
"I need match play," she said. "I'm getting better with every match. I wanted to play after Wimbledon, but I couldn't. I don't know how I played there [after falling on her left thumb, incurring a severe sprain, impeding her two-fisted backhand]. I had to have the thumb in a splint without moving it. A hand specialist told me it's common with football players. They never see an injury like this outside of football.
"But now the pain is gone. I'm fine," she said.
Ivanovic said, "I was hoping to slow things down, get into rhythm, try to make longer rallies. But Venus is very aggressive and she doesn't give you many chances. She plays very fast. Every time I tried to slow down, she would step in and hit even harder. She's very tough."
Ivanovic held three break points for a 2-0 lead, but never saw another. Venus, banging winners on the run (11 forehands), was all over her adversary, completing the Sisters' scorched asphalt afternoon.
Wearing a money green dress, Venus was looking forward to facing Serena in the semis. That's the goal. "It would be awesome - to have a Williams in the final, and a Williams as an American champion. Either one of us."
But first she will have to beat another Serb, Jelena Jankovic, and Serena must overcome No. 1 Justine Henin, her conqueror at the French and Wimbledon. I feel the Sisters will do it, and Venus will grab the title.
A Williams championship would be the sorority's 15th major. Serena has eight, Venus six. Since launching their collection of majors with 17-year-old Serena's US Open of 1999, only two years, 2004 and 2006, have been barren of at least one. Serena's French, Wimbledon, and US in 2002 was the largest haul.
Venus said, "I was in a zone today. I didn't hear anything. You know, I never lost my desire. But I had to get healthy and find my game. But I think that builds character and makes wins a lot sweeter. The funny thing is I never felt I played well at Wimbledon. Finally I looked at films this week, and was, like, 'Oh I played very well.' Finally, the realization came."
She said she sent an e-mail to Serena, advising her on playing Bartoli. "I saw her before my match and she gave me advice. We do that all the time."
As ever, the sisters are tight. Phi Jamma Slamma is entering a new phase, and the message is don't walk on the sorority house's grass.http://cache.boston.com/bonzai-fba/F...y_end_icon.gif
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
