With Wimbledon well under way, it's the perfect event to celebrate female empowerment, especially with such iconic moments as 15-year-old Cori Gauff beating the legendary Venus Williams this week and becoming the youngest ever female tennis player to qualify for a Grand Slam tournament main draw. We look back on five other memorable moments in the world of tennis.
Venus Williams and Serena Williams at the French Open 2018 / Photo Credit: USA TODAY Network/SIPA USA/PA Images
The Williams sisters change tennis
Not so much a moment as many moments. The Williams sisters first came on to the scene in the late 90s, and went on to change the face of tennis forever. Between them they have 30 Grand Slam title wins and have set multiple records, but their career isn't just about being the best in tennis.
The strength of their friendship is remarkable considering they have competed against each other on many occasions, and together they have risen above myriad criticisms of the racist and sexist kind; Serena in particularly being stereotyped as an "angry black woman" on numerous occasions and attacked for her athletic physique.
They have both been forced to battle serious illness; Venus with an autoimmune disease known as Sjögren's syndrome and Serena with a pulmonary embolism following the birth of her child; and yet they are stronger than ever and proof that hard work, discipline and self-belief are all that's needed to come out on top.
Billie Jean King vs. Bobby Riggs
In one of the most iconic girl-power moments in sports history, world tennis champion Billie Jean King took on professional male player Bobby Riggs in an historic match known as Battle of the Sexes. The year was 1973 and Billie Jean saw a sweeping victory, which was not only a triumph for women in sport, but one for women in general given that Riggs was hardly the most chivalrous of men.
Serena Williams wears a tutu
Serena came back after her recovery in a black catsuit last year at the French Open, around the time of the Black Panther movie. The French Tennis Federation banned catsuits soon after (despite Serena's reasoning that the outfit is designed to help prevent blood clots) in a move which many saw as racist because of the Black Panther connotations. Serena shrugged off the ban though, and returned wearing a black tutu and fishnets instead, to much global amusement.
Petra Kvitova defies the odds
When Czech Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova was attacked in her home by a knife-wielding assailant, she showed remarkable bravery and quick-thinking by fighting him off. However, the scuffle left her with injuries that threatened to de-rail her whole career. She suffered deep cuts to her fingers, with the nerves in the thumb and index finger on her playing hand particularly badly severed.
Her index finger was barely attached and she was told by doctors that she was less than 10% likely to ever play tennis again. Having already proved that she's not one to lose a fight though, Kvitova returned to the game just five months later, subsequently winning eight tournaments.
Venus Williams led the way for equal pay
Wimbledon became the last of the four biggest tournaments to award equal prize money to men and women, largely because the women did best-of-three set matches and men did best-of-five. But it was Venus Williams who pointed out in 2006 that women would be happy to play best-of-five matches, and she pleaded with the Grand Slam Board in 2005 to recognise their own prejudices against female players. It was with her constant pushing that by 2007, equal prize money was finally awarded to men and women.
