I'm bolder sister!

Jul 6 2008 Gavin Berry At Wimbledon

Big Sis Venus Is Just Too Strong For Shattered Serena

VENUS won the battle of the Williams sisters as she blew sibling Serena away on a windy Wimbledon afternoon in a pulsating final.

And she confirmed her status as one of the legendary ladies of SW19 after proudly lifting her second title on the trot and fifth in total.

Venus now trails hero Billie Jean King by just one championship in the All England Club's hall of fame and is two behind German great Steffi Graf.

But she still has a long way to go before catching record-holder Martina Navratilova who won nine times here.

As she held aloft the famous Venus Rosewater Dish in front of a packed Centre Court crowd - where King and Navratilova were seated - Venus said: "They're my favourites, Billie I love you."

The champion survived a whirlwind start from her sister and showed great guts and character to eventually win the match 7-5, 6-4.

She even slammed in a record-equalling 129mph serve during a fantastic performance.

But it was a tough match and dad Richard - who flew back to America because he couldn't bear to watch his daughters battle it out - must be regretting his decision to pass up a seat at Centre Court.

And he would have been kicking himself even more a few hours later when the duo teamed up to win the ladies doubles with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur.

Venus was thrilled with her battling singles victory but family came first as she celebrated with dignity.

The champion said: "First of all I'd like to congratulate Serena on a great match.

"My first job is big sister and I take that seriously. My dad was proud - he went home when we got to the final and said: 'My job's done, good luck to both of you!' "But I can't believe this is five titles because when you're in the final against Serena that seems so far away.

"She was awesome and it was a hard task to beat her. It's unbelievable, especially with some of the injuries I've had to go through.

"It's so rewarding to perform at Wimbledon and to know that every time I come back I have the chance to play well and make history. I love this place."

Venus banked the £750,000 winner's cheque but the impressive trophy would have ended up on the same mantelpiece anyway because the sisters share a house in Florida.

The victory levels up their all-time head-to-head record at eight wins each in what was the sisters' first Grand Slam final for five years.

Serena - who romped to glory in 2002 and 2003 - was gracious in defeat and claimed the better player won. She said: "Venus was a little better than me and it didn't work out the way I planned.

"The conditions weren't easy and every time I tried to hit a shot the wind would blow it.

"I've been working really hard and fighting for everything. But I'm so happy at least one of us was able to win the title - Venus played so well this year.

"It's a great celebration for the Williams family. We're glad to have been in the final again and hope for it to keep happening."

This was the fourth family meeting at SW19, Venus having won a semi-final in 2000 before Serena came out on top in their two final battles.

Russian star Elena Dementieva caused a storm when she claimed yesterday's winner would be a "family decision" which forced an angry response.

However, Venus was the defending champion and had won the Wimbledon title on four occasions to her little sister's two. So if the conspiracy theorists were right then surely it was Serena's turn.

The first game did nothing to dispel the theory of a pre-match carve-up as Serena broke serve straight away.

Venus twice double-faulted in the first four games as she struggled to get into her stride but regained composure to break back in the eighth game and level.

The good work in restoring parity was almost undone in a tough next game when Serena failed to take advantage of a couple of break points.

Venus held her serve and there was some sisterly love at the decisive point. Serena screamed "no" after hitting a shot she thought was going out and when the umpire instructed the players to replay she gave Venus the point - and the game.

The champion had the impetus after that and claimed the set in the final game as she broke Serena. That put her in pole position and Venus kept her foot on the gas.

There was no holding back as she blasted a Wimbledon-record 129mph ace to get off to a winning start in the second set. But Serena was digging deep and giving as good as she got.

In her sister's next service game she capitalised on a break point for only the second time in 13 attempts to take a 2-1 lead after an incredible 14-minute slog.

The exertions had clearly taken their toll though as Venus broke back immediately to level it up again.

And in a repeat of the first set it was in the final game that Venus broke - with Serena sending a shot well wide when Championship point down.

That brought the curtain down on a thrilling family affair.