Her 27 Grand Slam titles places her ninth on the all-time list: 13 in singles, 12 in women's doubles, and 2 in mixed doubles. She is the most recent player, male or female, to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously and only the fifth woman in history to do so. She was also the first woman, along with sister Venus Williams, to hold all four Grand Slam doubles titles simultaneously since Martina Hingis did so in 1998. Her 13 Grand Slam singles titles is sixth on the all-time list. Williams ranks fourth in Grand Slam women's singles titles won during the open era, behind Steffi Graf 22 titles and Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova 18 titles each. She has won more Major titles in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles than any other active player, male or female.
Williams has won two Olympic gold medals in women's doubles. She has won more career prize money than any other female athlete in history. Serena has played older sister Venus in 23 professional matches since 1998, with Serena winning 13 of these matches. They have met in eight Grand Slam finals, with Serena winning six times. Beginning with the 2002 French Open, they played each other in four consecutive Grand Slam singles finals, which was the first time in the open era that the same two players had contested four consecutive Grand Slam finals. The pair have won 12 Grand Slam doubles titles together.
Early life
Serena Williams was born in Saginaw, Michigan, to Richard Williams and Oracene Price. She is of African American heritage and is the youngest of Price's five daughters: half-sisters Yetunde (1972–2003), Lyndrea and Isha Price, and full sister Venus. When the children were young, the family moved to the city of Compton in Los Angeles county, where Serena started playing tennis at the age of five. Her father home-schooled Serena and her sister Venus and to this day, Serena Williams was and remains coached by both her parents.
Williams' family moved from Compton to Haines City when she was nine so that she could attend the tennis academy of Rick Macci, who would provide additional coaching. Macci spotted the exceptional talents of the sisters. He did not always agree with Williams' father but respected that "he treated his daughters like kids, allowed them to be little girls". Richard stopped sending his daughters to national junior tennis tournaments when Williams was 10, since he wanted them to take it slow and focus on school work. Another motivation was racial, as he had allegedly heard parents of white players talk about the Williams sisters in a derogatory manner during tournaments. At that time, Williams had a 46–3 record on the United States Tennis Association junior tour and was ranked No. 1 among under 10 players in Florida. In 1995, when Serena was in the ninth grade, Richard pulled his daughters out of Macci's academy, and from then on took over all coaching at their home. When asked in 2000 whether having followed the normal path of playing regularly on the junior circuit would have been beneficial, Williams responded: "Everyone does different things. I think for Venus and I, we just tried a different road, and it worked for us."
Playing style
Williams is primarily a baseline player. Her game is built around taking immediate control of rallies with a powerful and consistent serve (considered by some to be the best in the women's game), return of serve, and forceful groundstrokes from both her forehand and backhand swings. Williams' forehand is considered to be among the most powerful shots in the women's game as is her double-handed backhand. Williams strikes her backhand groundstroke using an open stance, and uses the same open stance for her forehand. Williams's aggressive play, a "high risk" style, is balanced in part by her serve, which combines great power and placement with very high consistency. Her serve has been hit as hard as 129 mph (206.5 km/h), the second-fastest all-time among female players. Serena also possesses a very solid volley and powerful overhead which is very useful for her net game. Although many think of Williams as only an offensive player, she also plays a strong defensive game.
Professional career
Serena Williams in 1995–99: Professional debut
Williams's first professional event was in September 1995, at the age of 13, at the Bell Challenge in Quebec City. She lost in the first round of qualifying to World No. 149 Annie Miller in less than an hour of play and earned US$240 in prize money.
Williams did not play a tournament in 1996. The following year, she lost in the qualifying rounds of three tournaments before winning her first main-draw match in November at the Ameritech Cup Chicago. Ranked World No. 304, she upset World No. 7 Mary Pierce and World No. 4 Monica Seles, recording her first career wins over Top 10 players and becoming the lowest-ranked player in the open era to defeat two Top 10 opponents in one tournament. She ultimately lost in the semifinals to World No. 5 Lindsay Davenport. She finished 1997 ranked World No. 99.
Williams began 1998 at the Medibank International Sydney. As a qualifier ranked World No. 96, she defeated World No. 3 Davenport in the quarterfinals before losing to Arantxa Sánchez Vicario in the semifinals. Williams made her debut in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament at the Australian Open, where she defeated sixth seeded Irina Spîrlea in the first round before losing to sister Venus in the second round, in the sisters' first professional match.Williams reached six other quarterfinals during the year but lost all of them, including her first match against World No. 1 Martina Hingis at the Lipton International Players Championships in Key Biscayne and her second match against Venus at the Italian Open in Rome. She failed to reach the quarterfinals of any Grand Slam tournament the remainder of the year, losing in the fourth round of the French Open to Sánchez Vicario and the third round of both Wimbledon and the US Open, to Virginia Ruano Pascual and Spîrlea, respectively. She did, however, win the mixed doubles titles at Wimbledon and the US Open with Max Mirnyi, completing the Williams family's sweep of the 1998 mixed doubles Grand Slam tournaments. Williams won her first professional title in doubles in Oklahoma City with Venus, becoming the third pair of sisters to win a WTA title. The Williams sisters won two more doubles titles together during the year. Serena finished the year ranked World No. 20 in singles.
Serena Williams in 1999–2001: Becoming a top 10 player
Williams lost in the third round of the 1999 Australian Open to Sandrine Testud. The following month, she won her first professional singles title when she defeated Australian Open runner-up Amélie Mauresmo 6–2 3–6 7–6 in the final of the Open Gaz de France in Paris. With Venus also winning the IGA Superthrift Classic in Oklahoma City that day, the pair became the first sisters to win professional tournaments in the same week. A month later, Serena won her first Tier I singles title at the Evert Cup in Indian Wells, California, having defeated World No. 7 Steffi Graf 6–3 3–6 7–5 in the final. At the following tournament, the Tier I Lipton International Players Championships in Key Biscayne, Williams defeated World No. 1 Martina Hingis in the semifinals before Venus ended her 16-match winning streak in the first all-sister singles final in WTA history. On April 5, 1999, Serena made her top 10 debut at World No. 9.
Williams played three tournaments during the 1999 European spring clay court season. She lost in the quarterfinals of the Tier I Italian Open in Rome to World No. 1 Hingis and in the quarterfinals of the Tier I German Open in Berlin to World No. 7 Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. Serena and Venus won the women's doubles title at the French Open, but Serena was upset by Mary Joe Fernandez in the third round of the singles competition. She then missed Wimbledon because of injury.
Williams did not play a clay court tournament before the 2001 French Open, where she lost in the quarterfinals to Capriati 6–2, 5–7, 6–2. Williams also did not play a grass court tournament before Wimbledon, where she again lost in the quarterfinals to Capriati 6–7, 7–5, 6–3, marking the fourth consecutive Grand Slam tournament at which Williams had exited in the quarterfinals.
Williams played three tournaments during the 2001 North American summer hard court season. After losing in the quarterfinals of the tournament in Los Angeles, Williams captured her second title of the year at the Tier I Rogers Cup in Toronto, defeating Seles in the semifinals and World No. 3 Capriati in the final. Williams was seeded tenth at the US Open, where she defeated World No. 6 and Wimbledon runner-up Justine Henin in the fourth round, World No. 3 Davenport in the quarterfinals, and World No. 1 Hingis in the semifinals before losing to sister Venus in the final. That was the first Grand Slam final contested by two sisters during the open era.
At the 2001-ending Sanex Championships in Munich, Williams defeated Silvia Farina Elia, Henin, and Testud en route to the final. She then won the championship by walkover when Davenport withdrew before the start of the final because of a knee injury. Williams finished 2001 at World No. 6 for the second straight year.
Serena Williams in 2002–03: The "Serena Slam"
Injury forced Williams to retire from her semifinal match at the Medibank International Sydney and to withdraw from the 2002 Australian Open. She won her first title of the year at the State Farm Women's Tennis Classic in Scottsdale, USA, defeating World No. 2 Jennifer Capriati in the final. She then won the Tier I Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne for the first time, becoming one of three players in the open era to defeat the world's top three at one tournament, after beating World No. 3 Martina Hingis in the quarterfinals, World No. 2 and sister Venus in the semifinals, and World No. 1 Capriati in the final. Her 6–2, 6–2 win over Venus was her second career win over her sister.
Williams played three clay court tournaments before the 2002 French Open. Her first tournament was at Charleston, where she was the third seed. Serena reached the quarterfinals after wins over Jennifer Hopkins and Nathalie Dechy but eventually lost to world no. 30, Patty Schnyder, 6–2, 4–6, 5–7. She reached her first clay court final in May, at the Eurocard German Open in Berlin, losing to Justine Henin in a third set tiebreak. The following week, Williams won her first clay court title at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, defeating Capriati in the semifinals and Henin in the final. This increased her ranking to a new high of World No. 3. Williams, as the third seed at the French Open, made the last eight at the tournament with wins over Martina Sucha, Dally Randriantefy, Janette Husárová and a 3-set win over Vera Zvonareva. In her quarterfinal match, she defeated '00 champion, Mary Pierce 6–1, 6–1. In the semis she faced defending champion and world no. 1, Jennifer Capriati. After an outstanding display of tennis, Williams advanced to her first French Open final on a scoreline of 3–6, 7–6, 6–2. In the final, she faced world no. 2 and older sister, Venus. Serena won in the final 7–5, 6–3 to claim her second Grand Slam title, her first in almost two and a half years. Serena rose to a career high of no. 2 after the win, second only to older sister Venus
At the 2002 Wimbledon Championships, Williams defeated Evie Dominikovic, Francesca Schiavone, Els Callens and Chanda Rubin to reach her third Wimbledon quarterfinal. In her next match, Williams breezed past Daniela Hantuchová 6–3, 6–2 and Amélie Mauresmo 6–2, 6–1 to reach the final for the first time. There, she again defeated defending champion and no. 1 Venus 7–6, 6–3 to win a Grand Slam singles title without dropping a set for the first time in her career. This victory earned Williams the World No. 1 ranking, dethroning her sister and becoming only the second African-American woman to hold that ranking on the Women's Tennis Association computer. The Williams sisters also won the doubles title at the tournament, the fifth Grand Slam title for the pair in women's doubles.
Williams rebounded from the loss at the 2003 Wimbledon Championships, defeating Henin in the semifinals and Venus in the final 4–6, 6–4, 6–2. This was Williams' second consecutive Wimbledon title and her sixth Grand Slam singles title overall. This was her last tournament of the year, as knee surgery prevented her from competing in the year's remaining events, including the US Open. As a result, she lost the World No. 1 ranking to Clijsters in August, having held it for 57 consecutive weeks. Williams finished the year ranked World No. 3 and with four titles. On September 14, 2003, while Williams was still recovering from surgery, her sister Yetunde Price was murdered.
Serena Williams in 2004–06: Injuries and inconsistent results
Williams withdrew from the Australian Open to continue rehabilitating her left knee. She then withdrew from further tournaments, which generated speculation that she was losing interest in the sport. After eight months away from the tour, Williams began her comeback at the Tier I NASDAQ-100 Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, where she defeated 16 year old Russian Maria Sharapova in the fourth round and World No. 8 Elena Dementieva in the final. This was the third consecutive year that Williams had won this tournament.
She then played three clay court tournaments leading up to the French Open. She lost in the quarterfinals of the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida, and, the following week at the Tier I Family Circle Cup in Charleston, she withdrew before her third round match because of an injured knee. She was away from the tour for four weeks before playing the Tier I Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, where she lost to World No. 9 Jennifer Capriati in the semifinals 6–4, 6–4. Although ranked World No. 7, she was seeded second at the French Open. She won her first four matches over players ranked outside the top 50 before Capriati beat her in the quarterfinals 6–3, 2–6, 6–3. This was the first time she had lost before the semifinals at a Grand Slam singles tournament since Wimbledon in 2001.
She was seeded first at Wimbledon even though her ranking had dropped to World No. 10. She reached the final where she was defeated by 13th-seeded Sharapova 6–1, 6–4. This loss caused her ranking to drop out of the top 10 for the first time since early 1999.
Williams reached her third final of the year at the JPMorgan Chase Open in Los Angeles on hard courts. She lost there to Lindsay Davenport 6–1, 6–3, which was her first loss to Davenport since the 2000 US Open. Williams then withdrew before her quarterfinal match at the Acura Classic in San Diego with another left knee injury. This injury caused her to miss both the Tier I Rogers AT&T Cup in Montreal and the Athens Olympics. She returned for the US Open, where she was seeded third even though she was ranked World No. 11. She lost there in the quarterfinals to World No. 8 Capriati 2–6, 6–4, 6–4. This match featured several missed line calls, including one that led to the suspension of the chair umpire for the remainder of the tournament. This match is commonly referred to as the impetus for the current challenge system.
Williams played only three tournaments the remainder of the year. She won her second title of the year at the China Open in Beijing, in which she defeated US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final. Five weeks later, she lost in the second round of the tournament in Linz, Austria to World No. 73 Alina Jidkova but still qualified for the WTA Tour Championships. In the round robin phase of the tournament, she defeated World No. 5 Dementieva, lost to World No. 1 Davenport, and defeated World No. 3 Anastasia Myskina. She lost to World No. 6 Sharapova in the final 4–6, 6–2, 6–4. Williams trailed 5–2 in the second set when she asked for treatment of an abdominal injury that caused her to serve around 65 mph. She led 4–0 in the third set before Sharapova won the last six games of the match. Williams finished 2004 ranked World No. 7 but did not win a Grand Slam singles tournament for the first time since 2001.
At the 2005 Australian Open, Williams rejected suggestions that she and sister Venus were a declining force in tennis following Venus's early exit at the tournament. In the quarterfinals, Williams defeated second seeded Mauresmo 6–2, 6–2. In the semifinals, she saved three match points in defeating fourth seeded Sharapova 2–6, 7–5, 8–6. In the final, Williams defeated World No. 1 Davenport 2–6, 6–3, 6–0 to win her second Australian Open singles title and seventh Grand Slam singles title. The win moved Williams back to World No. 2, and she stated she was now targeting the number one spot. Williams returned to the tour in July at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open in Cincinnati. Ranked World No. 139 because of her inactivity, she defeated World No. 11 Myskina in the first round 6–2, 6–2 before losing in the semifinals to eventual champion Vera Zvonareva. She also reached the semifinals in Los Angeles, losing to World No. 28 Janković in straight sets.
At the US Open, Williams was unseeded in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since 1998 and needed a wildcard to enter the tournament because her ranking was too low. She lost to top-seeded Mauresmo in the fourth round 6–4, 0–6, 6–2. She did not play again in 2006, ending the year ranked World No. 95. This was her lowest year-end ranking since 1997. Williams played just four tournaments in 2006.
Serena Williams in 2007–08: Return to the top 10
Williams began 2007 with renewed confidence, stating her intention to return to the top of the rankings, a comment former player and commentator Pat Cash branded "deluded".
Williams lost in the quarterfinals of the tournament in Hobart, Australia, a warm-up for the Australian Open. Williams was unseeded at the Australian Open because of her World No. 81 ranking and was widely regarded as "out of shape". In the third round, however, Williams defeated fifth-seeded Nadia Petrova, which was her first win over a top 10 player since defeating Lindsay Davenport in the 2005 Australian Open final. In the final, Williams defeated top-seeded Maria Sharapova 6–1, 6–2 to win her third Australian Open singles title and her eighth Grand Slam singles title. Williams dedicated the title to her deceased sister Yetunde. Her performance in the final was described by TENNIS.com as "one of the best performances of her career" and by BBC Sport as "arguably the most powerful display ever seen in women's tennis".
Williams next played at the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida in late March. In the final, Williams defeated World No. 1 Justine Henin 0–6, 7–5, 6–3 after saving a match point in the second set.
At the Tier I Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina on clay courts, Williams retired from her second round match because of a groin pull. The following week, Williams won her first singles match in the first round Fed Cup tie against Belgium on hard courts but withdrew from the second singles match to rest her knee. Williams played only one clay court tournament in Europe before the French Open. In Rome at the Tier I Internazionali BNL d'Italia, Williams lost to fourteenth-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland in the quarterfinals 6–3, 2–6, 7–6. After the tournament, however, she re-entered the top 10 at World No. 9. As the eighth seed at the French Open, Williams lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Henin 6–4, 6–3. Williams said her performance was "hideous and horrendous" and worse than ever. She also said that she felt "violated".
Despite the loss, Williams was one of the favorites for the Wimbledon title. During her fourth round match against Daniela Hantuchová, Williams collapsed from an acute muscle spasm at 5–5 in the second set. After a medical timeout and holding serve to force a tiebreak, rain forced play to be suspended for nearly two hours. When the players returned, Williams won the match 6–2, 6–7, 6–2. Williams then lost her quarterfinal match with World No. 1 Henin 6–4, 3–6, 6–3. Williams started the match with a heavily taped calf and was forced to use a one-handed backhand slice because of a left thumb injury. Williams was criticized for claiming after the match that she would have beaten Henin had Williams been healthy. After Wimbledon, Williams moved up to World No. 7, her highest ranking since 2005.
Williams started 2008 by participating on the U.S. team that won the Hopman Cup for the fifth time in Perth, Australia. Williams was the seventh seed at the Australian Open but lost in the quarterfinals to World No. 4 and third-seeded Jelena Janković 6–3, 6–4. This was her fourth straight loss in the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles tournament. In the women's doubles event, Serena and her sister Venus lost in the quarterfinals to the seventh-seeded team, Zheng Jie and Yan Zi.
Williams then withdrew from three tournaments because of an urgent need for dental surgery. Upon her return to the tour, Williams won three consecutive singles titles. At the Tier II tournament in Bangalore, India, Serena defeated sister Venus in the semifinals 6–3, 3–6, 7–6 after Serena saved a match point at 6–5 in the third set. This was the first time they had played each other since the fourth round of the 2005 US Open. Serena then defeated Schnyder in the final. At the Tier I Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Williams won her fifth career singles title there, tying Steffi Graf for the most singles titles at this tournament. Williams defeated World No. 1 Henin in the quarterfinals, World No. 3 Kuznetsova in the semifinals, and World No. 4 Janković in the final. This was her 30th career singles title.
Williams then played four World Team Tennis matches for the Washington Kastles, contributing 49 points for her team.
Williams was seeded first at the tournament in Stanford, California but retired from her semifinal match against qualifier Aleksandra Wozniak while trailing 6–2, 3–1 because of a left knee injury. That injury caused Williams to withdraw from the tournament in Los Angeles the following week.
Playing in the singles draw at the Olympics for the first time in Beijing, Williams was the fourth-seeded player in singles but lost to fifth-seeded and eventual gold-medalist Dementieva in the quarterfinals 3–6, 6–4, 6–3. Serena and her sister Venus won the gold medal in doubles to add to their victory at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, beating the Spanish team of Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual in the final.
Williams was seeded fourth at the US Open and defeated her seventh-seeded sister Venus in the quarterfinals 7–6, 7–6. Serena trailed 5–3 in both sets and saved two set points in the first set and eight set points in the second set. Williams then defeated Safina in the semifinals and second-seeded Jelena Janković 6–4 7–5 in the final after saving 4 set points at 5–3 in the second set. This was her third US Open and ninth Grand Slam singles title. This victory returned her to the World No. 1 ranking for the first time since 2003.
At the Tier II Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Williams was the top seed but lost to World No. 30 Li Na in the second round 0–6, 6–1, 6–4. Serena also played doubles there with her sister Venus, but they withdrew after winning their first round match because of a left ankle injury to Serena. On October 3, Williams announced her withdrawal from the Tier I Kremlin Cup in Moscow, citing a continuing left ankle injury and a desire to give her body time to recover from a packed playing schedule.Because of her withdrawal, she lost the World No. 1 ranking to Janković.
Williams defeated Safina in her first round robin match at the year-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha before losing to her sister Venus 5–7, 6–1, 6–0 in her second round robin match. She then withdrew from her match against Dementieva citing a stomach muscle injury. She ended the year ranked World No. 2 and with four singles titles, her strongest performance in both respects since 2003.
Serena Williams in 2009: Back at World No. 1
Williams was seeded second at the Australian Open. She claimed her tenth Grand Slam singles title by defeating Dinara Safina in the final 6–0, 6–3 in 59 minutes. This win returned her to the World No. 1 ranking and resulted in her becoming the all-time career prize money leader in women's sports, overtaking golfer Annika Sörenstam. In women's doubles, Serena and her sister Venus captured the title for the third time.
At the Open GDF SUEZ in Paris, Williams withdrew from the tournament before her scheduled semifinal with Dementieva because of a knee injury. Williams was the top seed at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, a Premier 5 event on the tour. She defeated former World No. 1 Ana Ivanović in the quarterfinals before losing to her sister Venus in the semifinals 6–1, 2–6, 7–6.
At the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, a Premier Mandatory event, Williams was upset in the final by 11th seeded Victoria Azarenka. This was the first of four consecutive losses for Williams, the longest losing streak of her career. She was defeated in her opening match at her first three clay court events of the year, including the Premier 5 Internazionali d'Italia in Rome and the Premier Mandatory Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open. She lost the World No. 1 ranking to Safina on April 20. Despite not having won a match on clay in 2009 before the French Open, she reached the quarterfinals there before losing to the eventual champion Svetlana Kuznetsova 7–6, 5–7, 7–5. This ended her 18-match Grand Slam tournament winning streak.
She rebounded at Wimbledon, saving a match point in defeating fourth seeded Dementieva in the semifinals 6–7, 7–5, 8–6. In the final, Serena defeated her sister Venus 7–6, 6–2 to win her third Wimbledon title and her 11th Grand Slam singles title. Although Williams was now holding three of the four Grand Slam singles titles, she continued to trail Safina in the WTA rankings, a fact Williams publicly mocked. Williams and her sister Venus teamed to win the women's doubles title at Wimbledon for the second consecutive year, their ninth Grand Slam title in women's doubles.
Following Wimbledon, Williams played two Premier 5 tournaments before the US Open. She lost in the third round of the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open in Cincinnati and in the semifinals, to World No. 5 Dementieva, of the Rogers Cup in Toronto.
She was seeded second at the US Open, where she lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Kim Clijsters amid controversy involving shouting at a line judge when defending match point — an offense which ultimately cost Williams the point and therefore the match. She continued in the doubles competition, teaming up with Venus to win their third Grand Slam doubles title of the year and tenth of their career.
Williams played only two tournaments after the US Open. At the Premier Mandatory China Open in Beijing, she was defeated in the third round by Nadia Petrova. Williams won all three of her round-robin matches at the year-ending WTA Tour Championships in Doha, Qatar, defeating World No. 7 Venus Williams, World No. 5 Dementieva, and World No. 3 Kuznetsova. She saved a match point against Venus before winning in a third set tiebreak. She then advanced to the final when US Open runner-up Wozniacki retired from their semifinal match while trailing 6–4, 0–1. In the final, Williams played Venus for the second time in four days, winning once again 6–2, 7–6, against her tired and error stricken sister. This was Serena's second singles title at this event.
Williams finished the year ranked World No. 1 for the second time in her career, having played in 16 tournaments, more than any other year.
2010: Continued dominance of the WTA Tour
Williams's first scheduled tournament was the Medibank International Sydney. She defeated Frenchwoman Aravane Rezaï in the semifinals 3–6, 7–5, 6–4 after trailing 5–2 in the second set and being two points from defeat. She then lost the final to World No. 5 and defending champion Elena Dementieva 6–3, 6–2.
At the Australian Open, Williams was the defending champion in both singles and doubles. She reached the singles quarterfinals without losing a service game or a set, where she eliminated Victoria Azarenka 4–6, 7–6, 6–2 after trailing 4–0 in the second set. In the semifinals, Williams defeated 16th seeded Li Na 7–6, 7–6 on her fifth match point to reach her fifth final in Melbourne and her fifteenth Grand Slam singles final. She then defeated 2004 champion Justine Henin 6–4, 3–6, 6–2 for her twelfth Grand Slam singles title. This was the first time that Henin and Williams had played each other in a Grand Slam tournament final. Williams is the first female player to win consecutive Australian Open singles titles since Jennifer Capriati in 2001–02. In doubles, Serena and Venus successfully defended their title by defeating the top ranked team of Cara Black and Liezel Huber in the final 6–4, 6–3.
A leg injury then caused Williams to withdraw from five consecutive tournaments, including the Premier 5 Dubai Tennis Championships and the Premier Mandatory Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne. She returned to the WTA tour at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome where she lost to Jelena Janković in the semifinals 4–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–5) after failing to convert a match point while serving at 5–4 in the third set, and then surrendering a 5–2 lead in the deciding tiebreaker.
At the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, she received a first round bye. In her first match, she made 73 unforced errors in defeating Vera Dushevina in the longest match of her career, 3 hours, 26 minutes, 6–7, 7–6, 7–6. Williams saved a match point at 6–5 in the second set, then injured her upper leg early in the third set. She then fell to 16th seeded Nadia Petrova 4–6, 6–2, 6–3. Williams won only two of her eighteen opportunities to break Petrova's serve. She teamed with Venus to win the doubles title.
At the French Open, she lost to Samantha Stosur in the quarterfinals 6–3, 6–7, 8–6. Williams made 46 unforced errors and squandered a match point at 5–4 in the final set. It was the first Grand Slam tournament that Williams had not won or been defeated by the eventual champion since the 2008 French Open. Williams has not advanced past the quarterfinals at this event since 2003. She also played doubles with Venus as the top seeds. Their defeat of Huber and Anabel Medina Garrigues in the semifinals improved their doubles ranking to World No. 1. They then defeated 12th seeds Květa Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik in the final 6–2, 6–3 to win their fourth consecutive Grand Slam women's doubles title.
Serena Williams in 2011: Comeback after medical complications
Because of her continuing rehabilitation for her foot injury, Serena withdrew from the 2011 Hopman Cup and the 2011 Australian Open. As a result, she dropped to world no. 12 in the WTA rankings, her lowest ranking since March 2007. However, she stayed in the top 20, despite not having played for 11 months. On March 2, 2011, she confirmed that she had suffered a hematoma and a pulmonary embolism. She made her first appearance on the WTA tour in almost a year at the 2011 AEGON International, in Eastbourne, winning her first match since Wimbledon, against Tsvetana Pironkova, 1–6, 6–3, 6–4, but lost to top-seeded world no. 3 Vera Zvonareva in the second round 6–3, 6–7, 5–7 in a match that lasted over three hours.
Her next tournament was Wimbledon where she was the defending champion. Despite being ranked 26th, she was seeded 7th. In her first round match, she faced French No. 2, Aravane Rezai and won 6–3, 3–6, 6–1. With this victory, at the Majors she currently holds a 44–0 record in first round matches. She then won her second round match against Simona Halep 3–6, 6–2, 6–1 and her third round against Maria Kirilenko 6–3, 6–2. She lost to the number 9 seed, Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli, in the round of 16: 3–6, 6–7. Bartoli described beating Williams as the greatest win of her life. As a result of this loss, Williams' ranking dropped to world no. 175.
Williams then played in Stanford as an unseeded player. She won her opening round match against Anastasia Rodionova winning 6–0, 6–0. In her second round match, she took out Maria Kirilenko in 3 sets, 6–2, 3–6, 6–2 to set up a meeting with Wimbledon finalist, Maria Sharapova. Sharapova stated previously in the week that she was excited at the thought to play Williams and Serena easily dispatched the Russian in straight sets, 6–1, 6–3. This was Serena's 6th consecutive win against Maria. In the semi-finals, Serena would take on Wimbledon semi-finalist, Sabine Lisicki who suffered a 6–1, 6–2 defeat. Serena powered through to her first final of the season where she would take on Wimbledon quarter-finalist, Marion Bartoli, who had defeated her at Wimbledon. Serena won her 38th career WTA singles title when she defeated Marion in straight sets in the final, 7–5, 6–1, also making it her first title in 2011 after three attempts and her first title since winning Wimbledon in 2010.
In her next tournament, Williams won the Rogers Cup, Serena started off strong beating Alona Bondarenko 6–0, 6–3. In her second round match she beat Julia Goerges in straight sets as well. After back to back three setters against Jie Zheng and Lucie Safarova, the semi-finals matched Serana against one of the most consistent players of the year, Viktoria Azarenka, beating her handily, 6–3, 6–3 to advance to her second consecutive final. In the finals, Serena defeated Samantha Stosur 6–4, 6–2 to win her second consecutive title and her 39th career title overall. Her ranking jumped to world no. 31. At the Cincinnati Open, Serena defeated Lucie Hradecka 6–3, 7–5. The next day, she withdrew from the tournament citing a right toe injury.
Next on her schedule was the US Open in which she entered using her protected ranking of number 1. She was seeded 28th and faced Bojana Jovanovski in the first round, winning the match easily, 6–1, 6–1 improving her record in Major first round matches to 45–0. She next faced Michaëlla Krajicek whom she beat 6–0, 6–1 to set up a meeting against 4th seed Victoria Azarenka.
Serena Williams's Grand Slam Finals
Singles: 17 (13 titles, 4 runner-ups)
Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
Winner 1999 US Open Hard Martina Hingis 6–3, 7–6(7–4)
Runner-up 2001 US Open Hard Venus Williams 2–6, 4–6
Winner 2002 French Open Clay Venus Williams 7–5, 6–3
Winner 2002 Wimbledon Grass Venus Williams 7–6(7–4), 6–3
Winner 2002 US Open (2) Hard Venus Williams 6–4, 6–3
Winner 2003 Australian Open Hard Venus Williams 7–6(7–4), 3–6, 6–4
Winner 2003 Wimbledon (2) Grass Venus Williams 4–6, 6–4, 6–2
Runner-up 2004 Wimbledon Grass Maria Sharapova 1–6, 4–6
Winner 2005 Australian Open (2) Hard Lindsay Davenport 2–6, 6–3, 6–0
Winner 2007 Australian Open (3) Hard Maria Sharapova 6–1, 6–2
Runner-up 2008 Wimbledon (2) Grass Venus Williams 5–7, 4–6
Winner 2008 US Open (3) Hard Jelena Jankovic 6–4, 7–5
Winner 2009 Australian Open (4) Hard Dinara Safina 6–0, 6–3
Winner 2009 Wimbledon (3) Grass Venus Williams 7–6(7–3), 6–2
Winner 2010 Australian Open (5) Hard Justine Henin 6–4, 3–6, 6–2
Winner 2010 Wimbledon (4) Grass Vera Zvonareva 6–3, 6–2
Runner-up 2011 US Open (2) Hard Samantha Stosur 2–6, 3–6
Serena Williams in Rivalry with Venus Williams
Williams has played her sister Venus 12 times in Grand Slam singles tournaments and 11 times in other tournaments (including 11 finals). She has a three match lead in the head-to-head series, 13–10 (including the last 4 in a row). They are the only women during the open era to have played each other in four consecutive Grand Slam singles finals. Currently Venus has 43 career tennis titles, while Serena has 39.
Serena Williams in Controversies
2004 US Open
In her 2004 U.S. Open quarterfinal match against Jennifer Capriati, several calls were made in Capriati's favor, even though later video review showed the calls to be clearly in error. Williams attempted at times to argue some calls, but was not successful. Capriati won the match, but tournament officials dismissed the match's umpire from the tournament. The controversy contributed to the adoption of MacCam and Hawk-Eye systems.
Serena Williams in 2009 US Open
In 2009, Williams again was involved in a controversial U.S. Open match, this time against Kim Clijsters in the semifinal round. The drama began at the end of the first set, when Williams slammed her racquet on the court in frustration over losing the set. She was given a warning, with a potential second violation carrying a one-point penalty. While trailing 4–6, 5–6, 15–30, Williams's second serve was called a foot fault, resulting in two match points for Clijsters. Williams gestured with her racquet to the lineswoman who had made the call and yelled at her, including profanities. During the subsequent on-court conference between the head judge, the lineswoman, US Open officials, and Williams, a television microphone picked up Williams saying to the lineswoman, "I didn't say I would kill you. Are you serious?" The incident resulted in Williams being penalized a point for unsportsmanlike conduct — necessitated by the earlier warning for racquet abuse — meaning Clijsters won the match 6–4, 7–5. The following day, Williams was issued the maximum permissible on-site fine of $10,000 (plus $500 for racquet abuse). After further investigation, the Grand Slam Committee in November 2009 fined her $175,000 in lieu of suspending her from the 2010 US Open or other Grand Slam events. They also placed her on a two year probation, so if Williams commits another offense in the next two years at a Grand Slam tournament, she will be suspended from participating in the following US Open. If she commits no offenses in the next two years, her fine will be reduced to $82,500. Williams initially refused to apologize for her outburst, both in her post-match press conference and in an official statement released the following day. She eventually apologized to the lineswoman in a statement two days following the incident.
Serena Williams in 2011 US Open
In the final of the 2011 U.S. Open against Samantha Stosur, Williams again generated controversy. After Williams apparently distracted Stosur as the Australian attempted to return a forehand Williams believed to be a winner by shouting "come on!", chair umpire Eva Asderaki awarded the point to Stosur based on the USTA's deliberate hindrance rule, which states, "If a player commits any act which hinders his opponent in making a stroke, then, if this is deliberate, he shall lose the point or if involuntary, the point shall be replayed." As the point was 30–40 on Williams's serve, the penalty gave the break of serve to Stosur. Williams became angry with the chair umpire and made several gestures and unflattering comments toward her during the next several changeovers, warning her, "Don't look at me," and telling her that if Asderaki ever saw Williams coming toward her, she should "walk the other way". Williams initially gained momentum in the set following the penalty, breaking back in the next game, but eventually flagged and lost the match, 6–2, 6–3. At the end of the match, she declined to offer the customary handshake to Asderaki. Williams mentioned the incident in her post-match speech as the tournament runner-up, claiming, "I hit a winner, but I guess it didn't count," but added, "It wouldn't have mattered in the end. Sam played really well." A writer for ESPN suggested that Williams could avoid being found to have violated the terms of the "probation" on which she was placed following her 2009 outburst, as she did not appear to have used profanity in addressing Asderaki during the match.
Serena Williams in Off-court activities
Fashion
Williams was once known for her unusual and colorful outfits on court. In 2002, there was much talk when she wore a black lycra catsuit at the US Open. At the 2004 US Open, Williams wore denim skirts and knee-high boots—tournament officials, however, did not allow her to wear the boots during matches. At Wimbledon in 2008, the white trench coat she wore during warm-up for her opening match was the subject of much discussion since it was worn despite the sunny weather. Off-court, Williams has also presented new designs. In November 2004, at the London premiere of After the Sunset she wore a red gown that had a near-topless effect.
Williams formerly had a special line with Puma and currently has a line with Nike. The deal with Nike is worth US$40 million and was signed in April 2004. Since 2004, she has also been running her own line of designer apparel called "Aneres"—her first name spelled backward. In 2009 she launched a signature collection of handbags and jewelry. The collection, called Signature Statement, is sold mainly on the Home Shopping Network (HSN).
Serena Williams in Entertainment
Williams has appeared on television and also provided voice work on animated shows: in a 2001 episode of The Simpsons Serena joined the animation along with sister Venus, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. She has also provided guest voice work in a 2005 episode of Playhouse Disney's animated kids show Higglytown Heroes and a 2007 episode of the Nickelodeon cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender, which she has described as her "favorite show".
Williams has posed for the 2003 and 2004 editions of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. In April 2005, MTV announced plans to broadcast a reality show around the lives of Serena and Venus, which was eventually aired on ABC Family. Williams has appeared twice on MTV's Punk'd and in 2007, appeared in the ABC reality television series Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race. In 2002, she played Miss Wiggins in the season 3 episode "Crouching Mother, Hidden Father" of My Wife and Kids; she has also guest-starred during episodes of ER and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2007 Williams appeared in the music video of "I Want You" by the American rapper Common, alongside performers Alicia Keys and Kanye West.
In late 2009, Williams became the first active female professional athlete to appear in a feminine hygiene product advertising campaign. A series of online videos and print advertisements for Tampax Pearl tampons showed her hitting balls at Mother Nature, played by Catherine Lloyd Burns, to prevent Mother Nature giving her a red-wrapped gift, representing her menstrual period. In the online videos, the two have dueling press conferences over the "bad blood" between them. "A lot of celebrities are not open to working with our brand, and we're thrilled that Serena is", said a brand manager for Tampax at Procter & Gamble.
Serena and sister Venus were mentioned in a couple of songs namely in Super Furry Animals studio album Phantom Power in a track entitle "Venus and Serena", in a single by Snoop Dogg Signs and Ludacris' single My Chick Bad.
Miami Dolphins venture
In August 2009, Serena and Venus Williams became part-owners of the Miami Dolphins. The formal announcement was made during a press conference overlooking the practice field. The Williams are the first African-American females to obtain ownership in an NFL franchise. Other prominent owners include: Jimmy Buffett, Gloria and Emilio Estefan (the first Cuban-American owners), and Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez . Stephan Ross, the majority owner of the Dolphins, said "We are thrilled to have Venus and Serena join the Dolphins as limited partners.
Serena Williams in Charity work
In 2008 Williams helped to fund the construction of the Serena Williams Secondary School in Matooni, Kenya. She received a Celebrity Role Model Award from Avon Foundation in 2003 for work in breast cancer. Williams has also been involved in a number of clinics at schools and community centers, particularly those which have programs focusing on at-risk youth. She has also won the "Young Heroes Award" from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater L.A. and Inland (2003) and the "Family Circle and Prudential Financial Player Who Makes a Difference Award" (2004). In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Williams, along with other ATP and WTA stars decided to forego their final day of preparation for the 2010 Australian Open to form a charity event in which all proceeds will go to the Haiti earthquake victims.
Writing
Serena has published along with her sister Venus Williams and renowned author Hilary Beard a book titled Venus & Serena: Serving From The Hip: 10 Rules For Living, Loving and Winning by Boston: Houghton Mifflin in 2005. During the 2009 Wimbledon Championships, Williams said that she is in the process of writing a TV show storyline, which will be converted into script form by her agency. She stated that the show will represent subject matter from a mix of popular American television shows such as Desperate Housewives, Sex and the City, and Family Guy.
Security
Williams has been the target of an alleged stalker, who was arrested at the gate to her Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., neighborhood on Monday, May 2, 2011. Police report that Patenema Ouedraogo, identified as an African who attended college in Texas, is barred from being near Serena by a preliminary injunction. Police say Ouedraogo was able to track Serena's whereabouts using the social networking site Twitter, and got her address from the letter her attorney sent telling him to stay away from her. Police say Ouedraogo once made it all the way to Serena's dressing room when she made an appearance on the Home Shopping Network at their studios in Tampa, Fla., on April 13, 2011.
All about: Novak Djokovic, Samantha Stosur, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova, U.S.open tennis, Maria Sharapova
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