VENUS Williams reacted angrily last night after it was suggested that the outcome of the Wimbledon singles final against her sister Serena could be decided by the Williams family.
After fifth seed Elena Dementieva lost to Venus in yesterday's semi-final, 6-1,7-6, the Russian said that the final was going to be "a family decision".
Dementieva later issued a statement to blame the remark on her poor command of English, but not before the suggestion had been put before Venus who angrily described such speculation as "ridiculous" and "pretty offensive".
The sisters' father, Richard Williams, has said already that he will be unable to watch the match, which takes place tomorrow.
Dementieva backtracks after calling Williams final a 'family decision'ELENA Dementieva has been forced to clarify a comment that appeared to suggest tomorrow's Wimbledon final between sisters Serena and Venus Williams will be decided by a "family decision."
The Russian, who was defeated in straight sets by Venus in the first of yesterday's semi-finals, made the remark during her post-match press conference when asked her thoughts on another all-Williams meeting, the seventh time the pair have contested a Grand Slam final.
It is the third final they have met at a final at Wimbledon. On the last occasion, in 2003, Serena claimed a three-set victory against her older sister. A disputed rib injury was said to have impacted on Venus' performance. But she has gained the chance for revenge after prevailing against Dementieva yesterday.
Serena Williams is pumped up during her winning match against Zheng Jie and will now face her sister Venus in tomorrow's final.
Serena, meanwhile, defeated the Chinese wild card Zheng Jie in straight sets. It immediately alerted reporters to an enduring notion that their matches are fixed.
Dementieva's alleged comment brought an angry reaction from Venus, who earlier had defeated the Russian 6-1, 7-6. She dismissed the inference as "ridiculous" and condemned a journalist's question about scepticism over the outcome of tomorrow's final as being "offensive.
"I'm extremely professional in everything that I do on and off the court," explained Venus. "I contribute my best in my sport and I also have a ton of respect for myself and my family.
"So any mention of that is extremely disrespectful to who I am, what I stand for, and my family. That's pretty much how I feel about the whole subject."
Dementieva later released a clarification but it did not help extinguish the controversy, particularly since she has already been caught up in a row about the same subject.
But in a statement released early yesterday evening, Dementieva claimed her original comment had been mis-heard by those in attendance. The statement was issued in order "to clarify what she (Dementieva] meant by the comment 'for sure, it's a family situation' during her post-match press conference in July 3, 2008."
It continued: "English is not my first language and I apologise for not speaking it better. I do not think for one second that matches between Serena and Venus Williams are family decisions. What I meant was it is a unique situation for a family to be in to be playing for a Grand Slam title. I cannot imagine what it must be like. I have a lot of respect for Serena and Venus, they are extremely professional in everything they do and have done so much for the sport. If they do play each other in the final, I expect a very tough match as they are two of the biggest fighters in the game."
Dementieva has already fallen foul of the Williams sisters, which suggests her plea for her earlier comments to be disregarded might fall on deaf ears. After she was beaten by Venus at the quarter-final stage of the Tennis Master Series at Indian Wells the Russian was asked about the prospect of the sisters meeting in the semi-final.
"I don't know what Richard (Williams, their father and mentor] thinks about it," Dementieva said. "I think he will decide who is going to win."
The controversy was further fanned by Venus' decision to pull out of the last four meeting just four minutes before she was due on court. She blamed her withdrawal on tendonitis in her knee. She said then that "everyone makes their own comments."
"That's how rumours get started," Venus continued, in 2001. "I guess the rumours are more exciting than the truth. The truth is I'm suffering an injury."
Serena last night refused to comment on the row but stressed she "really, really" wanted to win tomorrow. Her father, Richard, said that the final will be too hard for him to watch, although he has been present in the family box when his daughters contested finals in the past.
"Emotionally it would be too hard for me to watch," he said. "If I did I would be a drunk. On these occasions I schedule a flight home. I can't watch it. I go nuts."
The full article contains 822 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
