Serena Williams shared some insight into her former tennis rivalry with Maria Sharapova.
The duo shared arguably the WTA’s biggest head-to-head matchup throughout the 2000’s and 2010’s.
They competed against one another on the biggest stage on multiple occasions during their 15-year rivalry.
Their battles were so intense that many believed the pair held animosity toward each other, but Williams has set the record straight.
Serena Williams clears up any doubts about Maria Sharapova tennis rivalry
To add to the rumours around any tension between Williams and Sharapova, the Russian wrote that she was not friends with Serena and sister Venus in her 2017 autobiography titled “Unstoppable: My Life So Far”.
In a series titled ‘The Serena Collection’ posted by altxyzofficial on YouTube, Williams said their rivalry was just strictly business.
“Not anymore. I mean, was there ever beef? I guess. It was just competitive,” the 23-time Grand Slam champion said.
“She was winning, I was winning, you know, we both wanted to win, and I don’t think it was personal. It was just, ‘Do you want to win?'” The internet exploded when Serena, Venus and Sharapova took a photo together at the Met Gala in 2021.
This changed the narrative slightly, and even more so when Serena said at the time: “I got a chance to hang out with her (Sharapova) at the Met Gala. She’s fun, we talked, we clicked, we laughed. We talked about Tennis, it was really really fun and I loved it.”
What is Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova’s head to head record?
Williams and Sharpova met 22 times between 2004 and 2019.
The Russian claimed two of their first three encounters, the first of which came in the 2004 Wimbledon final.
At just 17 years of age she defeated Williams, the World Number One at the time, in straight sets to win her lone Wimbledon championship.
Williams then did not suffer another defeat to Sharapova for the rest of her career, winning 19 straight matches.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
