Reiging Wimbledon Champs Venus Williams on CNN'S Talk Asia

Media News

New Delhi, January 18, 2008

Venus Williams is a six-time Grand Slam winner with the fastest serve ever seen in the woman's game at a cool 127.4 mph. With the Australian Open well underway, CNN's Anjali Rao sits down with Williams on this weekend's Talk Asia and talks about her current number eight ranking, her beginnings growing up in the tough Los Angeles neighborhood of Compton, her rigorous training schedule, and close relationship with fellow pro and sister Serena. Anjali Rao also catches up with PGA golfer Hank Kuehne, who happens to be Williams' boyfriend, to reveal a more personal side of the tennis star.

The former world number one is currently ranked eighth but reveals to Rao I mean I love being number 1.being my absolute best, but at this point I feel okay within number eight and proved that she is still on top of her game when she was the lowest ranked player ever to win a Wimbledon single's title.

On her upbringing, the story goes that Richard Williams had wanted at least one pro tennis player in the family even before his daughters were born. He made sure that the young Williams sisters underwent intensive training, practicing their groundstrokes late at night, often in the freezing weather. Looking back, however, Williams is grateful for her father's harsh coaching style, believing that all the hard work led her where she is today, I appreciate everything that he's done, just to have two girls from one family do it to the top level is amazing.

Despite Compton being notorious for gang violence, her father took the sisters to the public park for tennis practice. Williams reminisces how she once had to dodge bullets when they were caught in the middle of a shootout during one practice session. Yet, nothing stopped the sisters' dedication to tennis and as Williams remembers, after a while, we got back to practicing there.

Williams also talks candidly on her close relationship with her sister and recalls the two times when she played against Serena in the finals on Wimbledon's centre court. She tells Rao, when we step on the court for sure we're not going to give each other a point. But off court we'll say, well geez, should have played better. Rao also talked to Williams' long time boyfriend Kuehne who suggests that the world is a lonely place ,so it's always nice to be able to have people that are closest to you there with you so I think I can help in that respect. and on Williams

she's just the same at home as she is on the court.

For more program information on Talk Asia visit www.cnn.com/talkasia. Transcripts are available online after the program has aired.

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