Venus Williams gave a brutal response when pressed after losing third straight Grand Slam final to Serena

It’s fair to say that by the end of 2002, Venus Williams was sick of the sight of her sister Serena in Grand Slam finals.

The Williams sisters are tennis icons, with a combined 30 major singles titles between them in their storied careers, and nine of these have come with victory over the other.

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Serena, who won a staggering 23 Grand Slams, came out on top in seven of these showdowns, with a particularly successful spell coming over twenty years ago.

And as Venus prepares to make a record-extending 25th main draw appearance at the upcoming US Open, she will likely be relieved her younger sibling isn’t in the mix.

The 45-year-old elder Williams sister faces Karolina Muchova at Flushing Meadows on Sunday, after being given a wildcard.

But with Serena calling time on her illustrious career in 2022, there is no chance of her inflicting another defeat on Venus.

Arguably none have been more crushing than in the pair’s face off in the 2002 final in New York, which saw Serena claim a third straight Grand Slam at her sister’s expense.

After Venus won their first major final together at the 2001 US Open, Serena came back with vengeance the following season.

The now 43-year-old beat her older sister in straight sets to clinch the French Open, before repeating this feat at Wimbledon a month later.

And by the time the US Open came around, Venus was desperate to get her own back after booking another showdown with Serena with a thrilling victory over Amelie Mauresmo in the semi-finals.

This was the first time in 15 years that the same two players had met in three consecutive women’s Grand Slam tournament finals.

Unfortunately for the seven-time major winner however, it wasn’t third time lucky, as she fell to a 6-4 6-3 defeat.

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And the treble of defeats certainly took its toll, with Venus unable to hide her disappointment in her post-match press conference.

After the final, a reporter asked if her level of tennis was the same as in her victory the previous year, and she revealed that it was the mental side of her game which had suffered.

Venus replied: “I think my level’s about the same. I think mentally, I’m not there as much.

“I think Serena’s level is definitely more up than last year. I think what I could do is just – I have to just go home.”

The American then shared that she had struggled to enjoy her tennis at the US Open due to the level of media attention on her and Serena.

When asked if she had enjoyed the event, she admitted “Not in this tournament as much as the rest. Not as much. 

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“I just had to tune out everything, people just wear you to death, and talk so much. This and that.

“I just wanted to get away from the hype, you know?”

Defeat to Serena in 2002 would ultimately prove to Venus’ last final appearance in New York, as she has failed to advance beyond the semi-finals in the 22 years since, last reaching this stage in 2017.

And things didn’t get much better against her sister for a while after heartbreak at the US Open.

Venus lost a fourth consecutive Grand Slam final to Serena at the 2003 Australian Open, and fell again at Wimbledon in the same year.

It wasn’t until 2005 that the elder sister would get her back, as she triumphed over her sibling in the US Open round of 16 in straight sets, before taking revenge in a final with a 7-5 6-4 victory over Serena at the All England Club in 2008.

Serena won the last-ever final match-up between the two sporting greats, as she clinched her final Grand Slam title at the 2017 Australian Open by beating Venus 6-4 6-4.