Serena Williams and Venus Williams will be squaring off for the 30th time in their careers when they collide in an all-too-early third-round showdown at the U.S. Open on Friday night.
Serena is leading the head-to-head series 17-12, including 3-2 at the U.S. Open. The sisters most recently faced each other at this tournament in 2015, when the younger one prevailed 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 during quarterfinal action. They clashed earlier this season at the Indian Wells Masters, as well, with Venus getting the job done 6-3, 6-4.
The older sibling took advantage of Serena’s rust, as the latter is making a 2018 comeback following the birth of her first child. Serena is obviously in much better form now, with a Wimbledon runner-up performance under her belt. The world No. 16 has advanced so far this fortnight with straight-set victories over Magda Linette and Carina Witthoeft.
Venus punched her ticket to the last 32 by beating Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 and Camila Giorgi 6-4, 7-5. The 38-year-old had has been in unspectacular form of late, with a third round/quarterfinal finish in three consecutive events (Wimbledon, San Jose, and Montreal). Another relatively quick exit would not be a surprise–mainly based on the unfortunate luck of this draw.
“It’s early in the tournament, so both of us are going to be looking forward to continuing to play better,” Venus commented. “It’s definitely a tough draw.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s exciting,” Serena said. “But it’s definitely going to be a really tough match for me. Once again, it’s early in the tournament. You know, it is what it is…. Unfortunately and fortunately we have to play each other. We make each other better. We bring out the best when we play each other.”
The reality, of course, is that they rarely play their best against each other–and who can blame them? If they haven’t in the past, they almost certainly won’t on Friday because neither one is in peak form. Serena’s comeback, however, has gained momentum since Indian Wells and she should be able to avenge that setback.
Pick: Serena in 3
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