The organizers of the BNP Paribas Open have confirmed that Venus Williams will return to the tournament for the first time since 2001.
Along with her sister Serena, the two players have boycotted the tournament for over ten years due to allegations of racism during the 2001 tournament. The controversy occurred during the semifinals of the tournament when the sisters were scheduled to play each other. Shortly before the clash, Venus withdrew from the match due to tendinitis. At the time Venus was accused of deliberately retiring from the match under the instructions of her father, an accusation that was never proven true. These accusations were fuelled by comments made by Russia’s Elena Dementieva a day before their semifinal clash.
“I mean, I don’t know what Richard thinks about it. I think he will decide who’s going to win tomorrow”. The former world No.3 said.
In the final, Serena played Belgium’s Kim Clijsters in what turned out to be a bombardment of booing and heckling from the crowd against her. The Williams camp complained that racist slurs were shouted during the final as the crowd cheered when Williams made an unforced error.
Despite having the crowd against her, Serena took the title. The incident resulted in one of the most prominent tennis boycotts of the modern era. Last year Serena ended her boycott after announcing the she will return to the tournament in a piece written for Time.com.
“When I was booed at Indian Wells—by what seemed like the whole world—my voice of doubt became real. I didn’t understand what was going on in that moment. But worse, I had no desire to even win. It happened very quickly”. Serena wrote.
“This haunted me for a long time. It haunted Venus and our family as well. But most of all, it angered and saddened my father. He dedicated his whole life to prepping us for this incredible journey, and there he had to sit and watch his daughter being taunted, sparking cold memories of his experiences growing up in the South”.
Playing in her first Indian Wells tournament since 2001, Serena reached the semifinals before withdrawing due to a right knee injury.
Now a year later Venus will join Serena and end her 14-year hiatus. The return of the 35-year-old was announced by CEO Raymond Moore.
“We are thrilled that Venus Williams, one of the greatest women’s players in the history of the game, is returning to play in the BNP Paribas Open,” Moore said.
“Our fans embraced Serena last year, and we expect nothing less for Venus when she returns to compete at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.”
The tournament will get underway on March 7th. The defending champions of the event are Simona Halep and Novak Djokovic.
2001 Indian Wells Final: Serena Williams Vs Kim Clijsters highlights
