Smallwood: A Grand spectacle, Serena Williams vs Venus Williams, one more time
Considering their histories, it would be foolish to guarantee that Saturday's Australian Open final will be the last time Serena and Venus Williams will meet in a Grand Slam championship match.
Both of the Williams sisters have been seemingly down for the count so many times only to get back up over the past two decades, it is impossible to say what their futures in tennis might hold.
Still, by any meaningful measure of sports, this should be it.
No one is surprised that Serena, 35, is gunning for her 23rd Grand Slam singles title that would separate her from Steffi Graf with the most in the Open Era (1968) and put her one behind Margaret Court (24) all-time.
At an age when most athletes are already retired or just hanging on until retiring, Serena is ranked second by the Women's Tennis Association and is still the most feared player on the tour.
Serena has won nine Grand Slams since turning 30, including four of the last eight.
Venus, 36, on the other hand, has primarily become a competitive afterthought. Long past her prime, she is ranked 17thand while she will win an event every now and then, she simply plays now for the enjoyment of the competition.
Her last Grand Slam title was in 2008 when she beat Serena at Wimbledon.
Venus' run to the Australian Final in the twilight of her career is the Cinderella story of the tournament. She suffers from Sjogren's syndrome, which can often cause unpredictable fatigue and joint pain
Before the tournament, her coach had said Venus would have a chance to make a strong run if the infamous 100-degree temperature in Melbourne stayed away.
It did.
She is the oldest woman to play for the title, and it is a David vs. Goliath challenge for a championship she has never won.
Serena is the sister she loves dearly but she is also the rival who has dwarfed her achievements on the court.
Venus is tied for 12th all-time with seven Slams (5 Wimbledon, 2 U.S. Open) which historically makes her a good/great player, but Serena is arguably the greatest of all time.
This will be the 28th meeting between the Williams sisters, which will make it the most encounters against a single opponent for both of them.
"It's the one time that I really genuinely feel like no matter what happens, I can't lose, she can't lose," said Serena. "It's a great situation."
That's an easier position for Serena to take because she is 16-11 against Venus overall, 9-5 in Grand Slam events and 6-2 in Grand Slam finals.
Starting with the 2002 French Open and ending with the 2003 Australian, the two met in four consecutive Grand Slam Finals with Serena sweeping to earn her "Serena Slam."
It is the only time in the Open Era that the same two women vied for four straight Grand Slam titles.
Should Venus upset her baby sister, she will eclipse her as the oldest woman to win a Grand Slam. By several months, she would pass Ken Rosewall as the oldest ever to win a Slam title.
If this is indeed the last meeting for the Williams sisters for a Grand Slam title, it's only fitting that it will happen in Melbourne.
Their first professional match up came in the second round of the 1998 Australian Open with 17-year-old Venus defeating 16-year-old Serena 7-6, 6-1.
Nearly two decades later, the siblings will make history as the oldest opponents to face each other in a Grand Slam final.