Your saying that venus and serena have no footwork and they just play power on the baseline! Only a idiot can believe you! Im getting really tired of people who have no in depth insight to players and their styles then they make judgements on the players. Venus and Serena do use immense power but they volley and more. Venus always looks to come forward, Serena knows when to come into the net. I could go on... yes the williams sisters pattern of late has been weird (just see my aussie article to know why). But your article is stupid and isnt worth anyone's time. :P

If it isn't worth your presious time?? You can agree or disagree, but calling names isn't going to change it so don't you feel stupid?? I also don't agree with the writer but would instead write an article with my own views instead of bad mouthing...

Williams ssters getting old and are done...

People really need to come to their senses and realise that the William sisters are in fact, getting older and that they just don't have that same technique anymore. It's quite obvious now that no one is scared of them anymore as the more daunting players to face now are all in the top 5.

It's actually quite foolish for the fans of the Williams sisters to say that they'll keep getting better. Face the facts. They're getting older. They've been on the tour for over a decade already. It's not that they won't be remembered for anything. In fact, they'll go down history as one of the best tennis players there is. Serena has 8 GS titles while Venus has 6. Even after retiring, they can even undergo that WTA Mentoring program that they have and help younger players. Aranxta-Sanchez Vicario and Martina Navratilova are doing it. I'm sure someone like Venus is willing to do something similar in addition to her other ventures. She's a very talented person. If you guys still insist that they're still a force to be reckoned with, then the world will leave you to fade out along with their professional tennis careers.

Another thing I'd like to point out is that the footwork of the Williams sisters is exceptional. Many of the details in your article are quite superficial. One of the main problems of the Williams sisters is consistency and fitness, and definitely NOT skill. Venus Williams probably has better volleying skills than Justine Henin and more or less equal court coverage but lately we've noticed that her fitness level doesn't bode well with her. Serena on the other hand is what you might call a 'sure footed powerful hitter that commands nuclear-grade groundstrokes'. She can keep up alright, but during her quarterfinal clash with Jelena Jankovic, she was spraying and error kept piling up. She's really inconsistent lately. It's not a matter of them not being able to play well. They are capable of playing well, but can they do so all the time?

i didn't even finish reading this article, all i had to read was the first paragraph. they had a bad australian open? i'd disagree. clearly, the williams are not going to be in the final of every grand slam. venus, went a lot farther here in australia this year than in the past and although serena was the defending champ, she actually lost according to her ranking...in the quarters. as far as doubles is concerned, serena definitely had an off day that day, losing in her singles and doubles, but it's great to see them putting effort into playing doubles again. the players they play in the doubles arena are highly devoted to playing doubles and in turn have better tactics. yes they might need more commitment sometimes, but a bad australian open i'd say it was not.

I don't think they had a bad Australian Open. Getting to the quearter finals cannot possibly be considered bad. They did play horrible quarter final matches. Neither of those Serbs can touch Venus or Serena when they are on their game. But jeez, when their games come apart they really come apart. I think the knowledgeable tennis watchers know that they are still indeed a force to be feared. They are in the top 10 and did both win slams last year, let us not forget. Their glory days are not behind them yet. The other women players are definitely all playing the power game that the Williams invented, so no, they can't get by on power, but they do have the necessary diversity in their games. They're not done yet.

I for one am tired of hearing this same talk. So Venus and Serena don't win a grand slam and they are suddenly in demise? Doesnt make much sense. And to even suggest that they are 1 demensional players is foolish. Venus is one of the best volleyers in the game and I agree with Big V with the only thing that has kept them back has been their fitness. People should stop taking a couple instances and blowing them out of proportion. The sisters won 2 of the slams last year playing their game. Are you gonna tell me that the nature of the game has changed so fast that half a year later they cant do it again. I beg to differ

For me, there is nothing in all of sports that is more satisfying than to see Serena lose a match...better yet, lose a title. Venus losing is just icing on the cake. Go Maria and Ana...and even Justine. Keep up the good work.

Interesting fact is that both lost from Serbs.

If I could compile all of your comments & opinions into one, Venus & Serena DEFINITELY changed the game!! They dominated for most of their tennis career there records will be hard to match!! They still can win Grand Slams if they cut down on unforced errors & rush shots. Venus playing Ana if you watched closely whenever Venus hit that two handed backhand, it almost knocked Ana over! Jelena didn't over power Serena either Serena lost due mostly to UNFORCED ERRORS! If the sisters quit the game now they don't have to pick up a racket ever again they are SET 4 LIFE! This is great coming from people who were trained by their dad in some of California's roughest areas. So again if Venus & Serena are 100% healthy & don't rush they can't be beat!! I know they are getting older and time is not on their side but they are the BEST!!

The Williams sisters and their fans always have an abundance of excuses on why they lost. Always an injury....which doesn't seem to manifest when they win points and games....always some reason other than the real truth is that they got beat by someone who played through their own injuries and won the match. Just once....ONCE. I would like to see them give unconditional compliment to the other player, the victor, by leaving out the disclaimer that Oh, I was injured. It is always an injury excuse and another incident of just bad sportmanship. I hope they never win another major.

It's Serena who always has the excuses. Venus was actually the one who had an injury (thigh) but she never mentioned it. Serena's always brash and woefully immature compared to her bigger sister who's always a class act. Please, don't say 'Williams sisters'. They're not the same despite their similar style. Either say 'Serena is blah blah blah' or 'Venus is blah blah blah'.

athletics is always about timing. power or big babe tennis was not invented by the williams, it came with seles and pierce. the williams brought power AND athelticism. but time waits for no one and now their athleticism is fading with age. there is only a small window for any athlete to build their legacy. serena could have won 8 or more majors in a roll back when she dominated the game, a feat that would have set her apart, but she thought she was bigger than the game. winning and losing with grace is the hallmark of champions. this way, even as their game fades with time, our love and respect for them continues to grow. i hope they can learn this lesson soon so that they can be as champions and not merely as sore winners.

well venus used to do the same thing (make excuses when she loses) not nearly as much as serena but she did. however the times i saw her lose last year she didn't make any excuses. serena on the other hand... "lucky shots", "i beat myself", "i played horribly, it wasn't her" give me a break

I have to agree with 'just someone'. That is very inappropriate to bad mouth the writer just because you disagree with what she stated. It is ok to write your own point of view, but to write it with so much negativity towards the writer isn't very professional. I actually agree with Ilana; when the Williams sisters came up there were only a select few who could hit the ball with as much power as they could. These players included Lindsay Davenport, Mary Pierce, Monica Seles, etc. But what is the common denominator of these players? They're all not as fast as Serena and Venus, which is why they could dominate, and at times easily. But nowadays, many players have everything, power, speed, and more variety. Though i do think that the Williams sisters can dominate again, they have to stay healthy and play to their full potential-like Venus did at Wimbledon last year. But they had better do it fast, as they are getting older than many of the top players.