THE SCOOP: U.S. OPEN DAY 12, SEPTEMBER 6

Get ready for Venus and Serena III, the battle for No. 1

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

Susan Mullane Camerawork USA, Inc.

FROM THE U.S. OPEN – Before Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier nearly put each other in their graves in their third and most celebrated fight, “The Thrilla in Manila,” there was sense around their training camps that it would be their fiercest battle to date.

The same feeling is pervading Ashe Stadium in anticipation of the Venus vs. Serena Williams U.S. Open final, which will be played in prime time in front of a mountain of A-list celebrities, deliriously exited fans and barely-able-to-contain-themselves analysts. It’s a rivalry that has all the makings of the most notable head to-head clash in women's history – Chris Evert vs. Martina Navratilova – and the best men’s rivalry of the past decade, Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi.

“We’re capable of having that kind of rivalry,” said Serena, who owns a 4-5 record against Venus but who has won their last three matches. “We’re building towards that.”
The sisters will be playing for No. 1 ranking and also will take into account that if Serena wins her third straight Slam, she will tie Venus with four Slam titles overall.
The Williamses well-played Wimbledon final gave fans just a small taste of what’s to come in the future: a high-octane, high-energy, high-level of futuristic tennis where 3-D glasses should be required to keep up with the visual dynamics of the rallies.

Serena is pumped to playing Venus for the third time in major final in three months.

“It’s very remarkable,” Serena said. “It’s a feat that’s never happened before. Growing up, I figured, ‘I want to be No. 1 and win Grand Slams.’ Venus had the same goals. When you are young, you really don’t think of that scale because it’s improbable. I never thought of the attention we’d get.”

DAVENPORT: ‘IT'S ONLY GETTING BETTER”
Lindsay Davenport, who Serena stopped in the semis, said that two sisters meeting in their fourth Slam final “is the most amazing thing in sport almost. Could you imagine Tiger Woods challenging a sibling to go head to head for all the majors, and in an individual sport, no less. They don’t have teammates to help them along. They both have attributes that makes them good players. They are similar in athletic ability and shots, but they have both learned to be at the top. … I feel very fortunate that I’m at the top of the game with them. I’ve played through two different eras, a little with Navratilova and a lot with Graf and Seles. It’s a different ball game now and much more athletic, much more harder balls, much better placement on serves. It’s only getting better.”

Some analysts have written that the Williamses dominance of the tour since February is bad for fan interest in the sport, but the attendance numbers and TV ratings don’t support that contention. Venus doesn’t understand this thought.

“When you win, there's a problem. When you lose, there's a problem,” she said. “So what do you want me to do?”

VENUS HAS WORKED ON IMPROVING
Venus has been working hard since Wimbledon to fix the problematic areas in her game, specifically her second serve, return and sometimes spotty forehand. She’s also been trying to incorporate a consistent net attack, which she knows she needs to employ against Serena, the planet’s most lethal returner. Venus hasn’t lost a match since losing to Serena at Wimbledon and is on a 18-match winning streak. However, the elder sibling said that it will be her mental state that will matter when she takes the court on Saturday night.

“It’s all in the mind,” said Venus, who brought out her steely focus deep in the third set against Amelie Mauresmo in the semis. “It’s not really anything physical anymore. Mentally, I just have to be there.”

Serena has played nearly perfectly the entire the tournament and is footloose and fancy-free both on and off the court. She isn’t quite bold enough to say that’s she’s better than Venus, but said that she will treat her just like any other impostor when they walk on to Ashe Stadium.

“Venus is playing well and I'm playing well, too,“ Serena said. “Venus is definitely right there if not a little bit ahead of me. That's what I keep telling myself so I can at least have a goal to work for. My attitude is the same when I'm playing Venus because she's my opponent. And I'm sure her attitude is the same because I’m her opponent.”