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Serena fans Unite: Introduce Yourself

58K views 530 replies 231 participants last post by  williams_fan92 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
(Hello my fellow Serena fans. I'm going to try to be more active in this thread since this thread is the one spot where all of us Serena fans can gather to talk about our love, admiration, and appreciation for all things Serena. So let's all try to gather here more often and get to know one another a lot better- I love all the other Serena fans out there...)

I'm just currious about everyone's story about when they became die-hard Serena fans- so please share....

As for me:
Well I started out as a die-hard Graf fan. Although Graf was my ultimate number one, I always kept my eyes open on all the new talent coming in and Serena really impressed me from day one. I could never have envissioned myself being a die-hard Venus fan because what I liked most about Steffi was her intensisty on the court and I just didn't see that in any other player on tour besides Serena. I remember the day where I "officialy" became a true Serena fan. When she was playing Indian Wells and that crowd was being horrible to her- I saw strength and courage in her, a will to overcome and not let the crowd get the best of her. To say that I was impressed is a great understatement. The thing I love most about Serena is her sheer will to be great (just like Steffi). To me it was a sign that the same year Steffi won her last grandslam and retired, it was the same year that Serena won her first grandslam. The torch was officialy handed over as far as I was concerned. Now if only she can stay healthy and have a career lasting as long as Graf's did- that would just be heaven!!!
 
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#2 ·
Hi Stef, well I can truly say I'm a die-hard Williams' fan. But, Serena is my favorite. I think I fell in love with her when she beat Martina Hingis in the US Open for her first grand slam. I was a die-hard Billie Jean fan back in the day. But, after Billie Jean retired, I kind of lost touch with the tour and the game of tennis. I've never really seen Steffi play and I probably wouldn't have been a fan, since I would have been rooting for Monica in those days. Then Venus came along after Serena and took her first GS at Wimby and then the US Open and repeated the next year. I really got into the game then. Around the next year 2002, Serena really started to come into her own and winning titles. She plays with such intensity and I admired her style of play. The strength and accuracy, the cunningness and the serve. She had the whole package. Contrary to popular opinion, I do not think she is out for the count. I think she is waiting to come back 100% and she is going to blow everyone off the court again. I can't wait for the day to see Justine's fans crying in their beer, when Serena whips her like a step child again. Serena just always comes through for me. She has the desire, so lacking in everyone else on the tour. You can never count her out. That was never so aptly displayed at AO 03 during the semis against Kim. She came through and started to own Hingis, then JenCap and now she's going to come back and reclaim ownership of Justine. I believe it. I believe in her.

:worship:GO SERENA!! :worship:
 
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#3 ·
Hi Dede42... Great post, thanks for sharing! It's hard to believe you went from the likes of Billie Jean- skipping my beloved Steffi, all the way to Venus and Serena. I agree with you in that Serena will not only be back soon, but she will come back STRONG (stronger than ever)...can't wait to see her out there dominating again....
 
#4 ·
I started watching tennis while I was in middle school. My favorite player at that time was Arantxa Sancez-Vicario. She had a flair and style I really liked. Venus and Serena immediately caught my attention at a time when my eyes were being opened by numerous players and the game was picking up with veterans and new talent.

I consider a fan of both Serena and Venus, but in terms of Serena I think I became a fan of hers for life not necessarily based on her playing style, but on her after match interviews. I saw a girl who didn't back down and one who held herself up with much intelligence and wit. The fact that she continued to win and break barriers certainly helped :)

There are many things about Serena that I love but I think I admire her fighting spirit above all else. I remember one time Serena was down (I cannot remember the oppenet) but the camera audio caught Serena telling herself, "Fight Serena, fight". Serena won the match.
 
#5 ·
I only started watching tennis in 2002, after the US Open. It was the sisters who sparked my interest in the game. There was so much excitement in the media, after they competed against each other in a GS final for the fourth time. The first match I watched featured Serena, and I've been addicted to tennis ever since. To be honest, I am a much bigger fan of Serena's than Venus', because, as mentioned, she has this intensity about her and a determination to win.

Great thread, btw. :)
 
#6 ·
Welcome Silverwhite! thanks for sharing your story with us, you're a living testament to the strength of the magnetic pull of Serena (and venus)- like you, they've brought in some many new faces to the wonderful sport of tennis.

Keep the stories coming Serena fans....
 
#7 ·
Stefwhit - u give me a hard on :cool:
I became a Serena fan when I saw her on the TV in Lipton on 1998.
Unfortunately I have yet to see her live, but that is because she really enjoys skipping the Canadian tournament. She has been only once here in Toronto, and once in Montreal. she skipped it 2 times I believe. So i've been a fan of Serena Williams since her early days. I started tennis first when I saw Venus in 1997, and I soon thereafter became her adoring fan, however, as you mentioned, she lacks the intensity that I soo much like in Serena. Venus was not always like she is today though. From 1997 - the end of 2000 she was full of outbursting energy. After the Us Open 2000 and Olympics, her intensity on court and her energy - not only sank, but dissapeared altogether.
You can see she is just not the same player without it, she seems tired on the court, slow compared to how she was, her serve is not a big weapon anymore as it was, she has become so fragile that whenever she makes a move I think she will hurt something... oh Venus, u need to get a good look at Serena and take away something from her into your game.
 
#8 ·
Interview with Serena in 1998 Lipton.



Why the bare feet? Do you want to show us the nail polish?
SERENA WILLIAMS: I forgot to put my shoes on. Someone was telling me some very exciting news.

Q. What is it?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I'm not going to tell the news.

Q. It's not news unless you tell us.

SERENA WILLIAMS: Just that me and what's his name? I think it's Kuerten are going to do something. He already agreed so I'm trying to decide if I should.

_____________________
Hadn't he won the French Open and she still don't know his name :lol:

 
#10 ·
I became a Serena fan in 1999 when she won her first grand slam at the US Open. I remember tuning into her match with Kim when she was fighting so hard and was down 3-5 in the third set. I always thought that tennis was boring and a snooze fest, but when I was marinating on the couch flipping through the TV, I saw this match. I rooted for her soo hard during that match and when it was over I practically woke the neighbors up screaming and cheering. From then on, I was hooked and when she won the title, I about had tears in my eyes (and I dont cry about anything). I love this womans confidence and her no holds barred attitude. She will do what she wants and noone will stop her. I think that her awesome confidence pissed off many in the tennis establishment who thought that she was supposed to just bow down and kiss the feet of everyone. I am going to be a hardcore Serena fan till the day that I die.
 
#11 ·
Serendy Willick said:
I rooted for her soo hard during that match and when it was over I practically woke the neighbors up screaming and cheering. From then on, I was hooked and when she won the title, I about had tears in my eyes (and I dont cry about anything).
:lol: GREAT STORY :lol:
 
#12 ·
hi stefwhit :)

i became a die hard serena fan in 1998 :) i was at my dentist, and i saw a magazine, a picture of venus playing usopen, and it was love at first sight (it can sound weird but first i enchanted by venus without knowing who she was or if she was a good tennis player or not.. oh and i loved her name too ;) ) but i loved venus figure on that magazine. i loved the beads, i thought it was different :). i never liked tennis back then.. then on 1999 roland garros, i saw serena played and i thought it was venus :eek: and i was impressed with her game... and everything.. the dress the beads, her game everything, and i really started following that tournament... then i remember i heard the commentor saying that she had a sister.. venus williams.. then i remembered when i saw that magazine in 1998 :eek:.. and that serena was the younger sister.. and i was like*wow.. theyre sister* and i became a fan of both.. but as i followed tennis, i saw how serena was venus shadow, and how serena used to lose to venus everytime they played.. and i still didnt swallow that wimbledon 2000 semifinals, where serena beat everyone 60 60 and lost incredibly bad to venus.. and i started to feel sorry for serena and an incredible anger towards venus... i even cried that whole afternoon.. after that match i became a bigger fan of serena and i started to cheer less for venus, and since venus started not to show her emotions on court and serena is exactly the opposite and i like emotional players.. i decided to only dedicated myself to serena, but i have an interest on venus, but my main dedication is towards serena :wavey:

nice stories of you guys :)
 
#13 · (Edited)
Becool- you're story is another reminder of what Serena (and Vee) have really brought to tennis. It's mind boggeling (sp?) how many new fans have started watching tennis now because of them, trully amazing!! Thanks for your story...
 
#14 ·
hey guys :)

i was a casual fan during the Steffi days, i just remember if my mom was watching tennis, i would be supporting Steffi and Andre, and not care about anyone else. then i remember watching Martina lift wimby in 97, then i guess i stopped watching tennis.

it feels like ive watched Serena grow from an eager teenager to a beautiful and delightful young woman :D we didn't get much tennis coverage in Europe until after the sisters were doing well...amazing huh? i remember the hype about 2 sisters in tennis, so i knew about them, but didn't watch them. then came that day in 00 when they faced off in the Wimby semis. Britain was soooooooo hyped it was amazing. when Serena lost, it was the talk of my class, about how she looked so upset. i was thinking "i'm gonna watch the final so i have something to add". watched the final and was cheering on Venus...

then i went to Canada in August 00, and it's funny how that's the time of the Canadian Open. just flicking, i saw Serena playing Martina Hingis, someone i also had an interest in. it was amazing how Serena just wiped the court with martina for the first set, but then got injured :sad: my first full slam following her was the USO 00. i was so sad when she got thrashed by Linzi in the quarters :sad:

so i guess, the first match i sat down and watched from start to finish involving Serena was the Canadian Open final in 00 :)
 
#15 ·
I became of fan of Serena after her victory over Lindsay Davenport at the ´99 U.S. open......I heard she had her first big win at IW earlier that year, but the way she won that match against Lindsay and the coolness and confidence she had. It was amazing. I knew it was only a matter of time before she would turn that rivalry with Venus around....and voila. She really really is the successor of Steffi Graf.
 
#16 ·
tennisjunky said:
Ten years from now it will be interesting to hear the new girls on tour talking about how they were inspired to play because of Serena. I always hear Americans complaining about no new superstars in their juniors but give it sometime. Serena has impacted millions all over the world so her effect in the states will be profound. Of course it will take at least 10 years before we see it.
You can change DeDe42 to DeMond. I'm the same person. Didn't the crew used to be floaters or something? :p
 
#17 ·
DeMond said:
You can change DeDe42 to DeMond. I'm the same person. Didn't the crew used to be floaters or something? :p
I reached a 500 character "Max" so I had to make some edits, too bad because I wanted to add all the people who post here regularly- oh well.
 
#18 ·
(bump) I thought I'd bring this topic back up... it's a very positive thread and it's fun to re-read...
 
#19 ·
Hmm.........I thought I'd post!


I remember, it was Wombledon 2002. I had just gotten out of school, and was at home chilling, and I saw Venus and Serena being interviewed by Paula Zahn on CNN's American Morning, and they had just competed against eachother at the French Open, and I said "Hey, let me watch." I had known who the Williams Sisters were since they came out, but I didn't know much about them except they were African-American girls who apparently dominated tennis. I guess I had assumed that Venus and Serena were winning every major, all the time.


So I woke up and watched Wimbledon. I don't remember much about specific matches, but at that point I loved both Venus and Serena's physical presence, and I thought it was cool and kinda sexy that Serena had blonde hair. So I watch them dominate Wimbledon, end of story. I'm a fan at this point, but not a fanatic.

Over the summer, I catch every Kournikova match on TV, I caught one Venus match, and noticed a news clip of Serena losing to Chanda Rubin. I saw the look of total disbelief for those 3 seconds after Rubin's match point, and I thought, "Wow, this girl really likes to win!" and then in her post match interview where she said, "You have to play great tennis to beat me," and that utter comfidence and aplomb (another word she taught me, LOL) and I was really leaning toward Serena. For some reasons, Venus' matches didn't really get my attention, they were boring to me, although I wanted her to do well.

Day 1: The US Open, Serena's opening match vs. Morariu. I noticed she had on the leather coat and shorts, and I thought, hmmmm, Whats that? When she took it off and stepped on court, and I saw her in action, she became my favorite then, at that point!


Then, the Australian Open 1R cemented her status as my favorite, especially Serena's choice words towards Loit, (I loved that for some reason!) and then her match against Clijsters drove my dedication into the ground. For some reasons, I just could not see Venus as a fighter, and her expressionless play just made me snooze on her. After those two matches, I couldn't even get excited for the final, all my tennis energy was spent.


But thats my story of how I discovered Serena Williams!
 
#226 ·
Re: When (and why) did U become a Serena fan??

Hmm.........I thought I'd post!


I remember, it was Wombledon 2002. I had just gotten out of school, and was at home chilling, and I saw Venus and Serena being interviewed by Paula Zahn on CNN's American Morning, and they had just competed against eachother at the French Open, and I said "Hey, let me watch." I had known who the Williams Sisters were since they came out, but I didn't know much about them except they were African-American girls who apparently dominated tennis. I guess I had assumed that Venus and Serena were winning every major, all the time.


So I woke up and watched Wimbledon. I don't remember much about specific matches, but at that point I loved both Venus and Serena's physical presence, and I thought it was cool and kinda sexy that Serena had blonde hair. So I watch them dominate Wimbledon, end of story. I'm a fan at this point, but not a fanatic.

Over the summer, I catch every Kournikova match on TV, I caught one Venus match, and noticed a news clip of Serena losing to Chanda Rubin. I saw the look of total disbelief for those 3 seconds after Rubin's match point, and I thought, "Wow, this girl really likes to win!" and then in her post match interview where she said, "You have to play great tennis to beat me," and that utter comfidence and aplomb (another word she taught me, LOL) and I was really leaning toward Serena. For some reasons, Venus' matches didn't really get my attention, they were boring to me, although I wanted her to do well.

Day 1: The US Open, Serena's opening match vs. Morariu. I noticed she had on the leather coat and shorts, and I thought, hmmmm, Whats that? When she took it off and stepped on court, and I saw her in action, she became my favorite then, at that point!


Then, the Australian Open 1R cemented her status as my favorite, especially Serena's choice words towards Loit, (I loved that for some reason!) and then her match against Clijsters drove my dedication into the ground. For some reasons, I just could not see Venus as a fighter, and her expressionless play just made me snooze on her. After those two matches, I couldn't even get excited for the final, all my tennis energy was spent.


But thats my story of how I discovered Serena Williams!
LOL, I had to go back and look for my original post in here. :lol: Still love her like no other, 7 years later.
 
#20 ·
JustIncredible said:
Hmm.........

Day 1: The US Open, Serena's opening match vs. Morariu. I noticed she had on the leather coat and shorts, and I thought, hmmmm, Whats that? When she took it off and stepped on court, and I saw her in action, she became my favorite then, at that point!
:haha:
 
#21 ·
there isn't a specific time that comes to mind, it seems like it was the moment Serena hit the scene i took notice and since then ive been in awe of her talent. im also a big maria fan, but she comes second to the queen serena. it seems that each time i see serena play i fall more and more in love with her. she truly has that something about her that makes her a diamond in the rough, not to mention shes beautiful!! :hearts:
 
#23 ·
The thing about Serena is that she embodies everything that a tennis fan should be and have. That determination to never quit, be the best, that flair and personality that brings all to attention - you literally cannot turn away. I've been a fan since her first final with Venus -- ever since then it's been Serena #1 with me.
 
#24 ·
I saw Venus play first. She was so athletic. I loved her muscles and her serve. Then I saw Serena. She was even more muscular than Venus. I never thought I'd see a player physically stronger than Matina Navratalova,but Serena made Martina look like a weakling. It was great to see two black women finally winning tournaments on a regular basis.
I fell in love with Serena's biceps,her thighs,her curves,her smile,her style,her sense of humor,her intelligence,her determination-and also her serve,her power strokes,her going for broke all the time which often resulted in incredible winners,her speed in getting to balls,and her winning Grand Slams after finally breaking through against Venus.
There's nothing better than watching Serena play when she's at her best. Injuries have slowed her down, sometimes she makes way too many unforced errors,and sometimes she just has a bad day,but when she's on she's the best there ever was.
 
#26 ·
Dana Marcy said:
I was a Venus fan first. Serena really impressed mewhen she beat Steffi at Indian Wells. Richard had always said that Serena was more talented but I never bought that and still don't. She's just more confident than Venus. :angel:
i'm not sure who's more talented but serena is the better tennis player. every ingredient you need to be great serena has and isn't lacking in any of the major departments. i like venus but i don't think it's an accident that serena has acheived more and i don't think it was an accident that serena prevented venus from so many major titles. serena has prevented a lot of people from major titles, in that regard, venus is just another player across the net.
 
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