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Grand entrance Venus Williams returns to the court
Posted: Wednesday May 31, 2000 09:40 PM
By Pedro Pinto, CNNSI.com PARIS -- Her name is Venus and she might as well have been on that planet throughout the first part of this year, because that's how far she was from the tennis circuit. Roland Garros marks her return after tendinitis in both wrists forced the elder Williams sister to take a break from the game. "I knew I would be back eventually,” Williams said. “I had a lot to do, and actually ran out of time with everything else that I was doing. But it wasn't very hard. I knew I would be back. It just took longer than I expected." Some people didn't expect her to be back at all, as several stories surfaced about Venus contemplating retirement. "Lots of reports came out, but it was just another false alarm," she says. It appears that she is here to stay, and the comeback version of Venus includes a sidekick. Her miniature dog. "Pete is 11 months old,” Williams said. “He has the heart of a lion. He loves to go everywhere, loves to ride in the car, go running and he sings very well. He's very quiet, he's well mannered, and just has an attitude. He doesn't always listen. But I'm trying to break him. It's hard, I'm a single mom." Venus has also returned with a new look. The beads are gone. "You know, I'm getting older, and I think it was time for a change. Things happen and here I am." The 19 year-old American, who won over 60 matches last season, has only played four so far this year. A fact which has made her more tense on the court. "Actually, I think my attitude is too serious right now,” she confessed. “Before I was very serious but more loose. But here I feel a lot more pressed for some reason, and I feel more like a perfectionist. I want everything perfect, and when it's not, I feel really awful. I want to get back to the way I was before." And her family is trying to help her achieve that. Her mother, father and sisters try to be there for each other every step of the way. "It's cool, it's nice,” Williams said, “because a lot of players don't have family, don't have sisters, and their crew with them. For us, it's just a big game. We always laugh. we're always looking for the next laugh. Venus owns a French Open title as she combined to win the doubles event here last year. Her 18 year old sister Serena, who already has a singles Grand Slam title, pulled out of the 2000 edition with a knee injury. It will be interesting to see whether Venus can win here on her own.
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