It’s no secret the Williams sister don’t enjoy playing each other, but do you know when the first bittersweet matchup between the two in a final occurred?
You have to go back to the 1999 Lipton International Championships title match. In this championship match they competed in the first all-sister final since 1884, when Maud Edith Eleanor Watson beat her older sister, Lilan Mary Watson in the first women’s Wimbledon final. (sidenote: How badass is it that women were battling it out at Wimbledon 40 years before women were even allowed to vote in every state in the US? Crazy stuff.)
Serena lost the match to her older sister Venus in three sets 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. Even though Serena lost it she obviously got something out of it considering she was crowned US Open Champion later that year. Combined they have won 9 titles in Miami to date. Don’t be surprised if Serena adds to that by winning her 7th title at the Sony Open this year.
