Home > Tennis > Venus Williams will be shining brightest once again at Wimbledon
by Kenneth Evans, Jr. on 23 June 2008
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Not even being seeded a lowly seventh could make defending champion and four-time winner Venus Williams think Wimbledon isn't hers to claim. She's conquered those lawns time and time again - and is looking to continue to conquer.
Venus knows that she's second to none on grass, especially at Wimbledon. Sister Serena is the only person who can trouble her and that's because it becomes more an emotional and mental battle, it's no longer just about tennis when they play. But even then Venus remains the favourite against her sister because she's more at home on the grass.
The long-legged American's movement is unmatched, especially on grass. Venus takes long lunges and gallops to the ball, gobbling up the court like nobody else. With her thunderous serve and adaptable ground strokes she’s basically unbeatable on the lush lawns of SW19.
If Venus somehow doesn't win Wimbledon, Serena would have to be the second favorite. With her unmatched power and determination to win against all odds, Serena is basically unbeatable to anyone other than big sis. Although her serve doesn’t reach the speed of Venus’s, it’s equally effective as she places it extremely well with more than a good amount of pace. Plus her second serve is also a weapon as nobody on tour can match it. Serena’s never-say-die attitude and in-your-face aggression is a dangerous threat on any surface.
Behind them are Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic, who have won the first two Grand Slams the season. Sharapova has been sharp all season long, even on the clay as she finally won a title on the surface that hinders her considerably. She marched to the Australian Open title without losing a set and continued her dominance with victories in Doha and the aforementioned clay-court title in Amelie Island.
Although, like the Williams sisters, Sharapova hasn’t played a grass-court warm-up, she’s used to the surface and certainly knows how to play on it making her very dangerous. The one thing Sharapova needs to do is realise that she can’t just hit her way out of every situation - she needs to develop a plan B, because plan A isn’t going to work all the time.
Ivanovic has been in the finals of both Grand Slams this year, losing the Aussie Open to Sharapova and winning Roland Garros over Dinara Safina, and she will be looking to make it a third consecutive final at Wimbledon. Although her game is much more suited to the clay, she can still have success on the grass, especially with that big serve and monster forehand.
Ivanovic needs so much time to produce her power and that’s what cost her the semi-final last year against Venus. Every time the ball came across the net Ivanovic had no time to set up and was constantly put under pressure to take bigger cuts at the ball to gain the upper hand. Ivanovic needs to be more aware of what the top players will do against her. Once she realises that, she’ll have much more success on Wimbledon.
Along with the two favorites and the two contenders there are two dark horses - Svetlana Kuznetsova and Lindsay Davenport. Kuznetsova is an all-surface player who can beat anyone any day. She has one of the games biggest forehands and is equally effective from anywhere on the court.
Davenport will be returning to Wimbledon for the first time since her crushing defeat to Venus Williams in the final in 2005. She has many weapons in her game, from her big serve to her powerful ground strokes. She’s a former champion, and a two-time finalist, so it’s obvious that with those credentials she’s no stranger to the grass. But when all's said and done, Wimbledon belongs to Venus and I can't see past her capturing title number five.
Comments (3)
by david powers on June 23, 2008
this author is dead on! i too can't see anyone else but venus taking the title! she's the best grass-court player of her generation and is the best on grass in the draw. she has a fairly easy draw, so she's ready and roaring to go, and according to serena, she's playing fantastic in practice! awesome article!
by Chris Smith on June 24, 2008
Venus Williams: someone said she joined an online service(++++++++S e e k m u s l i m . c o m+++++)))).. , a place for handsome,white and black us Muslim singles find their soulmates!!!!
by Aasim Shaffi on June 25, 2008
I agree with with your prediction of venus winning. I felt that your analyse of Ana's performance in Wimbledon 07 was spot on. Indeed its ineresting to see teh williams sisters start their campaigns, i wa simpressed to see teh last games of serena's 2nd match and venus 1st match cuz they closed out so well! They really are on task this year and i predict a williams final. Although serena need to gain momentum while i feel venus' has already built a great deal of it. great article
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