GOAT! Serena Williams Wins Australian Open; Beats Her Sister Venus

Source: Jacopo Raule / Getty

It’s clear that Serena Williams is the greatest of all time.
Not only did she beat her sister Venus Williams in the finals of the Australian Open for her 7th title in Melbourne, but she also won her 23rd Grand Slam title! According to USA Today, the 35-year-old beat her older sister, Venus, 36, in a 6-4, 6-4 final victory that lasted an hour and 22 minutes. But given their close relationship, there was no animosity with one another when the match ended—only love and admiration.

“I really would like to take this moment to congratulate Venus, she’s an amazing person,” Serena said of her big sister. “There’s no way I’d be at 23 (titles), or I’d be at one. She’s my inspiration. Thank you Venus for inspiring me to be the best player I could be.

Serena’s win is also history-making: She surpassed tennis icon Steffi Graff by winning 23 Grand Slam titles in total, the most a female player has won in an Open era. And this recent win will catapult her back to number one on the WTA rankings. Serena just needs one more Grand Slam title to tie with Australia’s Margaret Court for the most Grand Slam titles won by a woman, ever.

Let’s not sleep on Venus either.
She is the oldest player to ever reach the finals of the Aussie Open in tournament history and this is the first final Grand Slam final that she’s reached since 2009, where she was beat by Serena at the Wimbledon Championships. A mere two years later, Venus was diagnosed with the Sjogren’s Syndrome, an incurable autoimmune disease, USA Today noted.

Venus also had kind words for her lil’ sis: 
“I’m so happy to be able to play in front of you. Serena Williams — that’s my little sister, you guys. Congratulation Serena on winning No. 23 and I’ve been there alongside you, sometimes against you. I’m enormously proud of you,” she said.
“To enjoy this moment and be breathing, this is a beautiful thing,” Venus added.
This isn’t the first time the sisters have faced off against each other in the majors: They’ve played in nine Grand Slam finals with Serena winning seven of those meetings.
Of course, Twitter was up early Saturday morning sending their congrats:

Congrats Serena and Venus! You make us proud!