In women's singles draw of 2017 Indian Wells, a certain name had a significant impact. Despite her age, Venus Williams managed to put in some delightful tennis. But, as any other great thing, the mirage got its last representation yesterday evening. The last encounter of the quarterfinals stages opposed Williams and Elena Vesnina (15 WTA) and the 14th seed who went on stopping Venus from advancing in the semifinals.
Despite the loss, given her medical condition, Venus barely surrendered at the end of a 3 sets thriller.
Venus had some lingering issues
Back in 2011, Williams was diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome, a disease that causes a certain level of numbness and dehydration. For a top athlete that could have been a career-ending trigger. But Williams fought hard and eventually learned out how to manage her medical condition. Back in 2015, she began climbing back in the WTA ranking. To cap her comeback, she featured in Australian Open final this season losing in 2 tight sets against her younger sister Serena Williams.
At Indian Wells, Venus came close to defeat in the 2nd round while playing against Jelena Jankovic. Being a set down and 5-1 in the 2nd one, Venus had a tremendous comeback eventually winning in 3 sets. On her way to the quarterfinals, she got past Lucie Safarova in straight sets and Shuai Pen in 3 sets. Vesnina, a late bloom in the WTA Tour, secured herself a spot in the last 4 of women's singles.
Venus is getting closer to the top
For the 36-years-old, the run in Indian Wells ensures her a slight improvement in terms of ranking. Starting from Monday, she will be the world no. 12. As she previously stated, at that point of her career, she has nothing to do but to enjoy the time left as a professional tennis player.
The highlights of her career include multiple Grand Slam titles in singles (7), in doubles along with Serena (14) as well as gold medals at the Olympics. With a career spanning for almost 2 decades, Venus remains a monument of commitment to this particular sports.