Venus outshines Serena in sibling battle at Indian Wells

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Serena Williams took on her sister Venus in a much anticipated match at Indian Wells, 17 years after a scheduled meeting at the tournament sparked a 14-year boycott.

The family affair eventually saw Venus prevailing over her younger sibling Serena 6-3, 6-4 in the third round in Indian Wells on Monday night.

The last time the duo played against each other was at the 2017 Australian Open final, when a pregnant Serena won her 23rd Grand Slam title.

Venus Williams hits a backhand against her sister Serena during Day 8 of BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. /VCG photo

Venus closed out the one-and-a-half-hour match on her second match point when Serena's forehand service return went over the baseline. With the sisters having a face-off in 29 matches to date, Serena still owns a 17-12 advantage, although Venus evened their WTA Tour head-to-head meetings at 7-7.

Incidentally, the tennis stars were supposed to play each other in Indian Wells way back in 2001 as a packed stadium awaited their semifinal. But shortly before the match was to begin Venus withdrew with a right knee injury.

Although Serena went on to play Kim Clijsters in the final, when Venus and father Richard went to watch the match, the atmosphere quickly turned sour.

Serena Williams waves to crowd after her loss to her sister Venus Williams. /VCG Photo

Serena was heckled and booed throughout the final before she beat Clijsters, while Richard alleged that he heard racial slurs from the crowd. Subsequently, both the sisters decided to boycott the tournament for 14 years. Serena returned in 2015 and Venue followed the next year.

"I really abhor every time we play, but I do enjoy the battle when I'm out there," Serena said last weekend. "It's just afterwards I don't like it as much."

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