Serena and Venus Williams, tennis icons and sisters, have faced adversity hand-in-hand. From the challenges of their parents’ divorce in 2002 to the heartbreaking loss of their eldest sister, Yetunde, the following year, their bond has remained unbreakable. In a recent interview with ‘Harper’s Bazaar UK’, Venus shared how they’ve navigated these tough times together.

In that interview, she initially revealed how being mentally strong has become an important part of our lives. She added, “Not just for sport, but for life. You’ve got to make it out here. Nobody is going to make it for you. Sport teaches you how to cope with everything you’re going to have to deal with in life.” These are the things that she feels help us to come back from failures.

While Venus turned pro in 1994, her younger sister, Serena became became a pro a year later. Throughout these years, their incredible mental strength has helped them evolve into beasts who have now 30 Grand Slam titles under their name. This leads to a question: how was it growing up and evolving with Serena Williams?

“There’s no place like home. We hang out all the time. The distance doesn’t really exist.” Venus revealed that whenever they talk, tennis is almost kept off the table most of the time. “We just gossip. We’ve both been on a very stringent eating programme recently, so we’re supporting each other with that.“

While speaking about the enormous role of their parents while growing up, Venus said, “They were the best. They were very protective and made sure we had a childhood – you can’t get that back. So when it came to extremes, and it was going too fast, we would slow down.”

Even previously during an interview with Oprah, the 44-year-old tennis star revealed that coming from such a strong family has helped them to handle the criticisms that came in their way. That’s how they’ve evolved both as players and also as human beings.

Venus Williams reveals the importance of Serena Williams in her life

Venus Williams said, “If someone says we’re not good enough, then we just do better.” That’s exactly how they have managed to become so strong mentally. According to Venus, since their young age, all they’ve done is to work hard. She feels “For Serena and I to explore that freedom is surreal.“

Recently, during an interview, she got a bit emotional while imagining life without Serena Williams by her side. Venus highlighted the profound impact that her younger sister has made in her life. “To be honest. I can’t imagine not going through with her. I can’t imagine that other people play professional sports without a sibling because that’s my normal,” said Venus. She further added, “So l’m like, how do you do it? So I’m asking other people how do you not have a sibling that’s playing with you? Which is a weird way to look at it, but it’s what it is.”

Now talking about evolving, and the Williams sisters, the first thing that strikes our mind is Serena Williams’ long essay in Vogue during her retirement. She mentioned she never liked the word “retirement“, instead she wanted it to replace with “evolution“. Serena Williams said she was evolving away from tennis towards other important things in her life. Now Venus Williams’ story of how her equation with her sister evolved with time will perhaps be fascinating for all tennis fans.