At the 2017 Australian Open, Serena Williams played her first Grand Slam as an engaged woman, having just made the announcement to the tennis world that she and boyfriend Alexis Ohanian had gotten engaged. There, fans also got the first reaction from her sister Venus Williams to the news.
When Venus Williams shared her first reaction to sister Serena’s engagement (Source: Getty)
Speaking at her press conference in Melbourne, Venus lavished praise on her sister, saying that Serena was smarter than her and a wise woman who was about to start a ‘real life’ finally.
Venus, interestingly, also hoped that she would follow in her younger sister’s footsteps soon.
“She’s much smarter than I am. That’s pretty much… She’s a wise woman. She’s actually getting a real life,” Venus Williams said.
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“She’s paving the way, once again, for me. Maybe I’ll grow up. But it’s been an awesome year for her, and this will be a great year again,” she added.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion also shed light on what she thought of her soon-to-be brother-in-law, calling him a ‘super nice’ guy she was glad to welcome to the family.
“Yeah, he’s a super nice guy that — you never know how the things are going to end. In this case, it’s not gonna end, so it’s great,” she said.
“I can always get on a plane if she moves” – Venus Williams on Serena Williams moving out of their house after marriage
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Up until that point in their lives, Venus Williams and her sister Serena Williams were living in the same house and traveling to tennis tournaments together.
However, with Serena getting engaged, there was a chance that she would have to move out of the house to start her own place.
At the press conference, Venus addressed those concerns, stating that she was not too worried about how things might change in the future.
Even if Serena and her husband moved to a faraway place, Venus joked, she would just take a plane to go see them whenever she wanted.
“I haven’t asked any questions, because that’s kind of up to them. They don’t need any pressure from me or family members, like Do this, do that. They have to figure out this life together. That’s their job,” Venus Williams said.
“I just kind of go with the flow. I can always get on a plane if she moves somewhere else,” she added.
At the 2017 Australian Open, Serena and Venus Williams both reached the final, with the former beating the elder sister to win the 23rd and final Grand Slam of her career.
