How do people rate the prospect of the sister act rising to tennis domination again, as they did when they contested four consecutive slam finals and were ranked one and two back in 2002-2003
I've got a hunch we wont see them back at the top of the tennis heap. While i do think they both have good chances at taking the occasional slam (probably not the French) they don't play enough tournaments or stay fit enough to rise up the rankings.
At 25 and 27, while not technically old, recovery takes longer while susceptibility to injury only increases with age.
The question of dedication has always hovered around the Sisters-not they're determination during matches, but to training and the day to day grind that being at the top of the game demands. Serena has not looked in top physical shape all year-with her natural talent for picking up injuries, too much weight is the last thing her body needs. And of course the outside interests-which up to a point are to be commended-one dimensional human beings who are defined in terms of the sport they play often end up stranded and rootless sad individuals when they finally have to pack it all in-the sisters will never be that. But in too many distractions could turn brilliant careers in to merely superb ones.
We all know on they're day they can beat the best of the rest, apart from Henin on clay, but i doubt they can overcome injury, distractions and occasional self doubt to take the world by storm again-but you never know.

Maybe they can do it, maybe they can't, all I know is that I DON'T WANT it to happen. I want them to play slams and be in good form as they help make the game exciting but I like the fact that, apart from the French where Justine is so dominant, slams could be won by a number of women. It's a nice contrast to the predictability of the mens event with Fed and Rafa being so dominant.

I know what you mean, it's good to have different players winning the slams.
I do slightly miss someone totally dominating in the women's game-i love the idea of witnessing someone who history will judge to be one of, if not the greatest of all time-history in the making.

Well I think really this year, with Justine they have totally dominated grand slam tennis, the Oz being little more than a Serena show by the second week, Justine dominating the French and Serena being talked about as her only competition and Wimbledon was Venus' story while Serena and Justine both had dramatics of their own.

I see these three as the three top contenders for the US Open, and I would be surprised if anyone else won it to be honest.

I don't know if anyone can stay injury free long enough to dominate the game week in week out, but I would like to see Serena have one last 60/70 week stretch as world number one where she wins most of the slams she enters dominates whenever she plays and is the world number one, one last time.

Really I think it would be good if someone dominated tennis again like Serena did, for a change, as I find the unpredictability to a certain extent wearing, no one can even stay fit to establish a lasting rivalry. There was Henin/Mauresmo last year but that's gone now, Henin/Jankovic, but that's gone down the pan as well, for the moment.

Also when Venus and Serena were dominating, while there wasn't much the others could do admittedly, but it forced Justine in particular, but also Kim into raising their level to become champions able to compete with the sisters, we saw the culmination of that with Kim pushing both Venus and Serena in 2003 as well as Justine beating Serena too.

I loved it when the Belgians and Williamses were the top four, it's a shame we were robbed of that. I think what we need is three or four good players having a rivalry at the top, that sparks imagination, and "holds water" when it comes to slams.

I have high hopes that with Serena's renewed motivation and Venus over injuries for a while that 2008 and the rest of 2007 will bring that.

They really are awesome big-match players. I mean Serena in that Aussie Open final- one of the most dominant Slam performances i've seen. Only Graf vs Zvereva really surpasses it. Serena was just striking the ball with blistering power. When Serena's at her best, you might as well forget winning the match really.

Same with Venus at Wimby. As soon as she got through the early rounds, total domination. I mean her match against Sharapova, she was totally relentless, and her form just got more and more better with round.

I agree SW19, although i never regarded Kim as being in the top 4. When everyone was playing great, it was Venus, Serena, Lindsay and justine that dominated. It'll be really intresting to see how far Venus and Serena can go now. They've got that Slam taste back now, and the way they perform on the biggest stages, always puts them in contention now regardless of form outside of the Slams. They could certainly start to dominate again, as Venus especially seems her most injury-free for some time.

I'd love to see Davenport get back in the limelight in the Slams again. She's such a worthy threat to Venus, Serena and Justine when she's at her best.

I was just thinking of end of 2002/2003 really. Obviously before that it was Serena/Venus/Capriati in the big three, and before that Venus was the Queen with Serena, Capriati, Hingis, Davenport all challenging too, not to mention Seles and the Belgians looming.

Those were the days :clap:

Capriati could never really sustain her short spell of domination really. It was always underminded by the William sister's, particulary Venus in 2001. She was never reall able to overcome venus at the bigger events, which led me to believe it was venus ruling the roost that year.

Hingis completely lost her edge post 99. She held onto her ranking til the fall of 2001, but was being swept aside quite readily by Capriati, Serena, venus and Lindsay.

Seles was always a looming threat, but never the big force she was in the Graf/Sanchez Vicario era. She really became a bit of a perrenial quarter-finalist in her later years, particulary at the Slams. Shame, because without her horrific injury, she may well have been challenging for Slams as late as 2002.

In many ways 2001 was Venus' year more than 2000 was, simply because she played for more of the year.

She won 6/11 events she entered, one on clay, one on grass, others on hardcourts. The only blemish on her 2001 season was the clay season, that said she still won Hamburg :shrug:

Her win loss ration was also 90% that year, the only thing Capriati really had over her was that she got to the semis in all four slams, with Venus having a 1r exit at the French. But really when you consider Venus won twice as many titles as Capriati and was 3-0 against her, it really was Venus' year. :)

Venus had the most dominant Slam peformance was well in 2001 at the Us Open. Didnt drop a set, and in all her matches, the most games she conceded in a set was 4 :bow:

Ironic that Venus only got the number 1 ranking in early 02, when it was Serena's year of domination. It was also ironic in late 2001 when Lindsay had the YE number 1 ranking when it was really the year of Capriati and venus, especially in a year where Lindsay didnt even make a Slam final.

Venus really made the number one ranking look like a joke in 2000/2001 roflmao

roflmao

She really didnt give a stuff about the top ranking did she? If she was 145, she would still have dominated that year and pushed the number 1player out roflmao

I was surprised though, she missed the first 4 months of the year and still remained in the top 5 but then despite going on a 35 match winning streak couldn't get her ranking above 3 :huh:

Crazy system :rolleyes:

Craziest thing that year- hingis getting player of the year :rolleyes:

Craziest thing ever :angry:

Winning the YEC and getting humiliated in the only Grand Slam Final you play...wooo! Domination! :rolleyes:

i mean even if not Venus, lindsay should've been the next in line. An Aussie Open title, finalist at Wimby and the Us Open, Indian Wells title, finalist in miami etc....

Stupid ITF roflmao