Venus Williams
Third seed Venus Williams
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Thursday, 18, Jun 2009 12:08
Date of birth: 17/06/1980 (Age: 29).
Nationality: American
Height: 6ft 1in
Weight: 160lbs
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Turned professional: 1994
Current ATP singles ranking: 3
Best Wimbledon performance: Winner (5) – 2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008
Grass court pedigree
To put it simply, Venus Williams is the closest thing to a grass-court specialist in the women's game.
The different surfaces don't seem to create the same diversity in results on the WTA Tour when compared to the ATP Tour, but Venus always seems to come up trumps at Wimbledon even if she's not having the best of years.
Her five previous victories in the last decade point to a player capable of beating anyone on grass when she is on top of her game, and even when she's not quite 100 per cent the American is still a major force to be reckoned with.
Wimbledon seeding: 3rd
Chances of SW19 success?
Very high. She's been there and done it here before, on several occasions, and when it comes to the big-game atmosphere at Wimbledon - experience counts for a lot.
The younger, emerging stars usually find the extra pressure of the world's most famous and auspicious tournament over-bearing, especially in the later rounds, which is where Venus comes into her own.
Funnily enough, her main challenger in the defence of her title could be her closest ally on the tour - sister Serena.
This season has been an up and down one for Venus, with disappointments in the grand slams tempered by successes elsewhere. She suffered a shock loss in the second round of the Australian Open in January before clinching her 40th and 41st Tour titles in Dubai and Acapulco the following month.
Disappointment at Roland Garros earlier this month - when, as the number three seed, she was defeated by Hungarian 21-year-old Agnes Szavay in the third round - still grates with her.
However, her game is so well suited to grass that it is almost futile looking at her results elsewhere to determine how successful she'll be at SW19. She is always, always a major threat.
Prediction: Semi-finalist
It's difficult to see who it is that will beat her this year, because so many of the players in the top bracket have stuttered lately, but you get the feeling that someone will.
Svetlana Kuznetsova got over her big-game bogey man by winning the French Open earlier this month but in a strange way that suggests she isn't going to fare so well on the grass of Wimbledon.
World number one Dinara Safina has never done particularly well here, which suggests a really good chance for someone else in the top five to come through.
Still, for some reason I just can't see Venus winning her sixth title, and a third in row, in 2009. I have a feeling we may have an unexpected champion this year, in keeping the unpredictable nature of the women's game at the moment (although, admittedly, it could still be the younger Williams' name on the trophy again...).
Alistair Potter