May female tennis greats have dazzled people but not quite how Serena Williams does it. After beating her sister Venus at the Australian Open final on Saturday, Serena proved she is the greatest of all time by being the lone tennis player with 23 Grand Slams in the Open Era.
Serena, who held the previous record tied with another tennis great Steffi Graf at 22 Grand Slam titles, said she could not write a better story, having won her first Grand Slam at the Australian Open then breaking the record at the same tournament against her sister, ESPN reported.
Although it was a tough matchup for the siblings, Venus, who played in the Australian Open finals for the first time since 2003, was all praises for her younger sister who says "means the world" to her, adding that Serena's victories are also hers. Serena, meanwhile, reciprocated the compliments saying that she would not be in her place with Venus.
When it comes to the Australian Open, Serena is queen. The 35-year-old has won seven Australian Open titles, seven Wimbledon championships, six at the US Open and three at the French Open. She trails by only one title to tie record of 24 titles in the Open and amateur eras held by Margaret Court.
It was not just the title she won as Serena overtook Angelique Kerber as the number one in the world. Also, basketball great Michael Jordan, who is known for wearing the number 23 with the Chicago Bulls whom he led to six titles, congratulated Serena by giving her own Air Jordan 23, NEWS.com.au reported.
Serena said she "finally made it to Jordan status: 23" as people claim the number 23 means greatness for athletes. Michael Phelps, considered the greatest Olympian, has 23 gold medals while LeBron James, touted as the greatest basketball player today, wears the jersey number 23.
Watch the video below for Serena's comments about her sister: