Venus Williams' Title Dreams Hit by Tatjana Maria in Hobart International Thriller.
Tatjana Maria pulled off a stunning upset in the singles final of the Hobart International, defeating five-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams 6-4 6-3.
The German's win marked an impressive victory over a player that many considered to be on the decline, and it will surely give her the momentum she needs as she heads into the Australian Open. Maria also made history in the process, becoming the oldest competitor in a main draw singles match at the tournament.
As for Williams, she has been struggling with inconsistency throughout her career. After winning seven Grand Slam singles titles and Olympic gold in 2000, she continued to have success but eventually lost touch with the top level of the sport.
Maria's win was also bittersweet as it came at a time when her daughters, Charlotte and Cecilia, were huge fans of Williams' rival Serena, who won three Grand Slam singles titles together.
"It is never easy playing a fan favourite in sport - particularly not when your children are huge supporters of your opponent," Maria said after the match. "Everybody loves Venus - I love her too!"
Tatjana Maria pulled off a stunning upset in the singles final of the Hobart International, defeating five-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams 6-4 6-3.
The German's win marked an impressive victory over a player that many considered to be on the decline, and it will surely give her the momentum she needs as she heads into the Australian Open. Maria also made history in the process, becoming the oldest competitor in a main draw singles match at the tournament.
As for Williams, she has been struggling with inconsistency throughout her career. After winning seven Grand Slam singles titles and Olympic gold in 2000, she continued to have success but eventually lost touch with the top level of the sport.
Maria's win was also bittersweet as it came at a time when her daughters, Charlotte and Cecilia, were huge fans of Williams' rival Serena, who won three Grand Slam singles titles together.
"It is never easy playing a fan favourite in sport - particularly not when your children are huge supporters of your opponent," Maria said after the match. "Everybody loves Venus - I love her too!"
Tatjana Maria's win over Venus Williams was such an inspiring moment, but also kinda bittersweet for me... I mean, you gotta love Serena too! 
Those two are like sisters on the court, and it's not often you see a player compete against their own fan's favorite. But, at the same time, Tatjana played an amazing match and proved she's still got it! 
The fact that she became the oldest competitor in a main draw singles match is just wild... I mean, who else can say they've been around the block a few times and still come out on top? 
Anyway, congrats to Tatjana and good luck with the Aussie Open! 
so Tatjana Maria just took down 5-time GS champ Venus Williams and everyone's going wild 
but let's keep things real, how old is she really? 37? That's crazy for a singles match. 
anyway, I guess it shows that even at an advanced age, tennis is still the sport for you if you can hang in there...btw, what's with the "it's never easy playing a fan favourite" speech? sounds like she's saying it to get sympathy points 
. And making history like that is just amazing. I love how she handled the pressure of playing a fan favourite too - it shows a lot of class from her side.
i mean, defeating venus williams in the final is a huge deal for her career, and it's amazing to see an older player still killing it out there. 6-4, 6-3 isn't even that far off from venus' usual winning margins 
. anyway, gotta give maria props - she handled the pressure well, especially with her daughters being such huge fans of serena. can only imagine how tough that must have been for her! 
Tatjana Maria totally crushed it on the court, and she's proving that age isn't everything! Interesting how she managed to pull off this win without any major injury issues, considering all the time she spent with her daughters cheering for Serena. 
6-4, 6-3 is a huge upset and I'm so impressed! 
And yaaas for breaking that record too! 
and we can't wait to see what's next for her! 
! Like, what's up with these tennis upsets? One minute she's a legend and the next, she's getting served 
. I feel bad for Maria, winning this match was like a mix of excitement and weirdness - playing a fan favorite with your own mini-fans in the stands? Talk about an awkward situation 
. On the bright side, Maria's got some momentum going into Aussie Open, maybe she'll even get to take down another tennis icon 
. I'm not saying she's on the decline or anything (although that 6-3 final score does scream that), but maybe it's time for her to take a step back and watch some of these youngbloods do their thing 
!
Tatjana Maria totally pulled off an upset and I gotta respect that. I mean, five-time Grand Slam champion is no joke, but sometimes you just gotta step it up 
. And can we talk about how gracious she was after the match? I love that she mentioned everyone loving Venus and being a fan favourite... it's all good vibes 
. Now let's see if Tatjana can keep this momentum going into Aussie Open... 
i mean can you imagine having to play your kid's rival and still manage to get a W? Tatjana Maria must have pure ice in her veins 
anyhoo, congrats to Tatjana on an epic win and let's see how far this momentum takes her into the Aus Open!
. And wow, it's so sweet of Maria to admit her kids were fans of Williams' rival Serena 
!
, she's actually got the skills to back it up.
but we gotta be honest, she hasn't been playing as well as she used to. maybe this loss will motivate her to work harder and come back stronger? fingers crossed for venus!
and totally outplayed Venus Williams in Hobart. It's crazy how old she was to be competing in that main draw singles match tho? I mean, I've seen some talented players retire early, but not at 37! 
. And for Maria, that win is definitely a momentum booster, but what about when Serena shows up at the Aus Open?