Who Is More Successful- Serena or Venus Williams?

Venus and Serena Williams have been two of women’s tennis’ strongest lights. The sisters revolutionized the way tennis was played in the circuit and have been veritable sources of inspiration for countless young players. But, during the heydays of their career, they also shared an incredible rivalry, which has only enriched the sport further!

Their parents – Richard Williams and Oracene Price coached them for the longest time and this journey has recently been chronicled in the  film ‘King Richard’, starring Will Smith in the titular role. It was the elder Venus who made her debut first in 1994 and she was followed closely by her Serena in 1995. Since then, they have been indomitable forces to reckon with on the WTA tour.

Venus and Serena Williams- the rivalry

The sisters have famously shared a great and invigorating rivalry with each other. The two have met 31 times, the most recent of which was in 2020 and Serena leads their head-to-head 19–12.

Both of them have been the world number one in singles with Serena occupying the position for 361 weeks while Venus Williams has been at the top for 11 weeks. Both of them have also held the top ranking in doubles. Between the 2001 US Open and 2017 Australian Open, the sisters played against each other in nine Grand Slam finals.

Venus has 49 WTA singles titles to Serena’s 73. In terms of Grand Slam titles, Venus has won seven with 5 Wimbledon and 2 US Open titles. Serena, on the other hand, amassed 23 singles majors.

More than the rivalry, their partnership on the court has been phenomenal. The pair is unbeaten in Grand Slam doubles finals and have won 14 of those together. They also share an all-time joint record of winning three Olympic gold medals in women’s doubles. Another point to note here is that 22 of Serena’s 23 doubles titles are with her sister.

Who is more successful?

When it comes to success in terms of tennis, Serena Williams is definitely far ahead of Venus. But, the elder sister is also the one who changed the entire landscape of women’s tennis. Both of them are also widely regarded as two of the greatest tennis players of all time. They have often been asked about competing with and against each other and how being at the top of women’s tennis together impacted their relationship personally.

Off the tennis court, both of them have found their own niche to work with. The Williams sisters have their own fashion lines, which are creative outlets reflecting their own personal styles. On top of that, Serena also has a venture capital firm, which invests in early stage start-ups.

Many experts have often questioned the sanctity of their relationship with each other and how they could sustain it given that they competed in such high stake matches against each other. But, the sisters maintain that their bond is like none other, as is their dependency on each other.