“She has never forgiven me,” When Maria Sharapova opened up about Serena Williams’ brawling hate for her
Follow Us
Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams
Tennis has been blessed with many iconic rivalries on both the men’s and women’s circuits but probably the most interesting, weird, and one-sided rivalry was seen in women’s tennis between two greats of the game- Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. Both women have played each other 22 times and Serena has won 20 of those meetings.
Interestingly, Sharapova won 2 out of the first 3 meetings they had in 2004, and ever since then, it has been one-way traffic. Serena has man-handled Sharapova and has just dropped three sets in their next 19 meetings. She has humiliated Sharapova in the Russian’s prime and has defeated her on the big stages convincingly.
There wasn’t much love between the two women and when last year, the two met at Met Gala and posed together, the fans were taken aback naturally.
But probably the triggering point of this feud between two modern greats was the 2004 Wimbledon final. Serena Williams, who was a 2-time defending champion faced 17-year-old Maria Sharapova in the final. And the Russian stunned Williams in straight sets 6-1,6-4 and humiliated the top seed.
“I think she hated me for seeing her at her lowest moment”: Maria Sharapova on Serena Williams
In her autobiography, ‘Unstoppable: My Life so far’, Sharapova spoke about her rivalry with Serena and how difficult it was for her to beat the American legend. She specifically recalled 2004 Wimbledon final and wrote how angry Williams was after losing the final.
Sharapova wrote that she heard Williams screaming and crying and she hated her for seeing her so vulnerable. Williams understandably didn’t want Sharapova to see her crying and also added that she would never forgive her for that.
“What I heard when I came into the locker room was Serena Williams bawling. Guttural sobs. I got out as quickly as I could, but she knew I was there. I think she hated me for seeing her at her lowest moment. But mostly I think she hated me for hearing her cry. She’s never forgiven me for it,” she wrote.
Also Read: Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic 2022: Women’s Singles Draw Preview and Prediction
Stay Updated!
Lakshya Chopra
(2595 Articles Published)