Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News
· collected 2026-09-05 · by Michael Koziol
Some fans have criticised this US Open for the ambient noise emitted by attendees who won’t stop talking during play – particular on its cavernous centre court.
asserted
who → criticise → court
But reporters who have been at Arthur Ashe Stadium all week agreed the crowd was much better behaved at Friday night’s blockbuster starring Venus and Serena Williams.
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crowd → agree → Williams
They were there to actually watch the game.
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They → watch → game
These are legends of the sport, who turned back the clock and fell agonisingly short in a doubles thriller against Australia’s Maya Joint and Taiwan’s Hao-ching Chan.
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who → turn → Joint
It was a match that more than lived up to the occasion; getting better over its three hours, and with plenty of quality, exciting rallies that can sometimes go missing in the stop-start, rapid-fire nature of doubles tennis.
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that → live → tennis
On a hot Friday night, New York brought out its stars.
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York → bring → stars
Mr Beast, the YouTuber extraordinaire who has amassed more than 500 million subscribers, was on court for the coin toss, while those watching in the stands included Vogue editor and tennis tragic Anna Wintour, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Andy Dalton and wrestler Mr T.
While the crowd may have been respectful during points, it was uproarious between them.
uncertain
it → amass → them
From the moment Serena, 44, and Venus, 46, emerged on the court, the parochial New York audience went predictably crazy.
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audience → emerge → court
It is here at the US Open that these titans won two of their 14 grand slam doubles trophies; where Venus was a singles champion twice and where Serena picked up six of her 23 singles titles.
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Serena → win → titles
They last played doubles here in 2022, when they were already in their 40s, losing in the first round.
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they → play → round
The stands then, as now, were packed to the rafters with fans who thought they may not see the Williams sisters again.
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they → pack → sisters
Indeed, Serena retired straight after that US Open, and gave birth to her second daughter, Adira, nearly a year later.
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Serena → retire → daughter
This week she told Good Morning America her inspiration to return to the doubles court came from her older daughter, Olympia.
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inspiration → tell → daughter
“You need to play with Auntie VeVe,” Olympia had urged.
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Olympia → need → VeVe
“She said it so clear and so calm.
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She → say → it
She’s like my mom, she doesn’t really talk a lot, but when she does talk, you listen.”
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you → ’ → mom
Joint, who is just 20, was born in Michigan to an Australian father, and moved to Melbourne last year.
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who → bear → Melbourne
This year, she knocked Serena out of Wimbledon in the first round of the singles draw.
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she → knock → draw
Like a classic car that needs a few runs around the block to warm up, the Williams sisters excelled as the match went on, having lost the first set 3-6.
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match → need → set
Serena got bolder at the net, to her advantage, while Venus improved her ground strokes from the back of the court.
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Venus → get → court
Challenged substantially multiple times on serve in the second, they dug in and, willed on by the home crowd, produced some of the best tennis of the match at the net and from the baseline.
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they → challenge → baseline
Fans roared when, after a truly remarkable rally in the tiebreak, the sisters set up their fourth set point.
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sisters → roar → point
When they ultimately prevailed to send the match to a decider, the crowd rose instantly to its feet.
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crowd → prevail → feet
Down a break early, the Williams sisters clawed their way back to even keel.
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sisters → claw → keel
An expectant crowd rode every wave, gasping as Serena smashed a forehand way long at 4-4, and cheering every winner (and occasionally, a fault from Chan or Joint, which the umpire tried to quell).
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umpire → ride → which
People were on their feet as Venus and Serena raced to a 5-0 lead in the deciding tiebreak when victory seemed all but assured.
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victory → race → tiebreak
Somehow, they faltered, stymied by costly errors at the final hurdle.
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they → falter → hurdle
The crowd was subdued in defeat, but gave them a standing ovation as they departed.
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they → subdue → ovation
In the end, not much separated the contenders.
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much → separate → contenders
The legends matched their younger counterparts pound for pound, they put on a thrilling show, and the win could have easily been theirs.
Speaking on court after the match, Joint praised the “surreal” atmosphere, one she had not experienced before.
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she → match → atmosphere
Playing against such esteemed opponents was “super special”, she said.
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she → play → opponents
“I grew up in Michigan, I’ve always looked up to them …
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I → grow → them
I’m lost for words.
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I → lose → words
We often write off older bodies, especially women who have given birth.
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who → write → birth
It is something every elite athlete must grapple with; on the men’s side, Novak Djokovic is doing just that after his first-round exit from the US Open at age 39, having vomited multiple times on court as he appeared to come to grips with his new limitations.
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he → grapple → limitations
Venus and Serena Williams declined to speak to reporters after the match, so there was no opportunity to parse their thoughts on the gutting loss.
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Venus → decline → loss
But they turned back the clock with style – and though many left the stadium heartbroken, nobody left disappointed.
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nobody → turn → stadium
More US Open coverage
- Aussies in the news: Nick Kyrgios cocaine ban revealed
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ban → reveal → news
