Venus and Serena Practice in Doubles
Venus Williams was upset early in the 2009 Australian Open, but Serena Williams is poised to play her quarterfinal singles match on Wednesday. In between singles matches, Serena has had a chance to practice a bit during her doubles matches. At the beginning of the season, it’s a smart move to compete in the doubles because it offers an opportunity to iron out the rusty parts of one’s game in real match conditions. Singles
and doubles are quite different, but one still serves, returns and in today’s doubles, hits a lot of ground strokes. For Serena, who has struggled at times in the 2009 Australian Open, the doubles matches with sister, Venus, provide a more relaxed atmosphere in which to improve her singles game while simultaneously chasing another Australian Open doubles title. On the men’s side, there are no top players playing doubles (and practicing). The days of top players such as Martina Navratilova and John McEnroe playing singles and doubles all the time seem to be in the past…








