Townsend beats Venus Williams as Freedoms win
When she was a child, Taylor Townsend watched the Williams sisters and told people she would be better than them one day. She didn't know how it would happen or when, but she got her answer Thursday night at Villanova's Pavilion.
When she was a child, Taylor Townsend watched the Williams sisters and told people she would be better than them one day. She didn't know how it would happen or when, but she got her answer Thursday night at Villanova's Pavilion.
For three games, Townsend, just 18 years old, wasn't just better than Venus Williams playing women's singles in World TeamTennis. She dominated her.
Townsend won 12 of 13 points against Williams before the 25th-ranked women's singles player in the world was removed from the event. Townsend won the final two games against Anastasia Rodionova to cap a dominant, 5-0 performance, jump-starting the Freedoms to a 22-15 victory over the Washington Kastles.
"I'm just happy with how I played, you know," Townsend said. "I didn't really focus on the fact that I was playing Venus Williams."
Williams, 34, did not appear to be injured in the event against Townsend, the 144th-ranked women's singles player in the world. Williams returned to play women's doubles in the fourth event of the night. She looked weary at times, her shots frequently slamming into the net.
Williams lost three of the first four points in mixed doubles in that fashion, partnering with Leander Paes in a 5-3 loss to Liezel Huber and Marcelo Melo.
In women's doubles, Williams exacted a small measure of revenge, pairing with Radionova to defeat Townsend and Huber, 5-3.
Townsend admitted that she was nervous before the singles match. She won nine consecutive points before Williams won her first.
Freedoms owner Billie Jean King beamed on the sideline throughout Townsend's dismantling of Williams, who became one of the league's owners before the 2013 season.
"I don't think I've seen a kid with a better overhand, ever," King said of Townsend.
It was the second straight night in which Williams lost a women's singles match. On Wednesday night, she fell, 5-4, against Anabel Medina Garrigues of the Texas Wild.
It has been a rough few weeks for Williams after she lost in the third round of the Wimbledon singles tournament. Her sister, Serena, had to withdraw from their second-round doubles match at Wimbledon on July 1 with a virus.
Venus Williams has won just one Grand Slam title, Wimbledon doubles with her sister in 2012, since her battle with the autoimmune disorder Sjogren's syndrome began in 2011.
Before Thursday's match, Williams said she hopes to continue playing as long as her health allows her. She liked what she had previously seen from Townsend.
"I think the future is bright for her," Williams said. "I think all she needs is time just to get the experience and learn how to win the matches, and you know, things everybody goes through. You just have to pay your dues and get out there and put the time in."
The future came too soon for Williams on Thursday.