While Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer has been enjoying some of Mallorca’s finest beach clubs with the family, another tennis great has flown to the island but this time to practise.
This week Venus Williams has been at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor.
She was seen on Thursday carrying her kit bag and a set of tennis rackets, seemingly preparing for the upcoming Canadian Open, which is scheduled to commence on August 7.
Venus put her disappointing Wimbledon campaign behind her by jetting off to Italy for a relaxing break.
The 43-year-old five-time All England Club champion received a wildcard entry to her 24th appearance at the grasscourt Grand Slam but, following an early fall, was comprehensively dispatched by fellow wildcard entrant Elina Svitolina, who herself went on to reach the semi-finals, however now she is back on court in Mallorca preparing for the rest of the season.
A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Venus Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats of the sport.
Along with her younger sister, Serena, Venus Williams was coached by her parents Oracene Price and Richard Williams. Turning professional in 1994, she reached her first major final at the 1997 US Open. In 2000 and 2001, Williams claimed the Wimbledon and US Open titles, as well as Olympic singles gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She first reached the singles world No. 1 ranking on 25 February 2002, becoming the first African American woman to do so in the Open era, and the second of all-time after Althea Gibson.
She reached four consecutive major finals between 2002 and 2003, but lost each time to Serena.
She then suffered from injuries, winning just one major title between 2003 and 2006. Williams returned to form starting in 2007, when she won Wimbledon (a feat she repeated the following year). In 2010, she returned to the world No. 2 position in singles, but then suffered again from injuries. Starting in 2014, she again gradually returned to form, culminating in two major final appearances at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2017.
Along with her seven singles major titles, Williams has also won 14 women’s doubles major titles, all partnering Serena; the pair are unbeaten in Grand Slam doubles finals.
She became the world No. 1 in doubles for the first time on June 7, 2010, alongside Serena, after the pair completed a non-calendar-year Grand Slam at the French Open. The pair also won three Olympic gold medals in women’s doubles, in 2000, 2008, and 2012, adding to Venus’ singles gold in 2000 and her mixed doubles silver in 2016.
Williams has also won two mixed doubles major titles, both in 1998.
In the meantime, Rafa Nadal is on board his yacht off Greece.