MELBOURNE, January 28, 2017

Serena Williams has become the most decorated Grand Slam champion in Open Era history, beating sister Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday evening for her 23rd Grand Slam crown and her seventh in Australia.

The second seed hit 10 aces, winning 76 per cent of her first service points to prevail in one hour and 21 minutes.

“My first Grand Slam started here, and getting to 23 here, but playing Venus, it’s stuff that legends are made of,” Serena said. “I couldn’t have written a better story.” The 35-year-old US-American is breaking the record she had shared with Steffi Graf.

Her triumph at the Australian Open also means that Williams will regain the top spot of the WTA ranking from Angelique Kerber, who was eliminated in the fourth round in Melbourne.

“It feels good. I like being on top, so I really like that feeling.”

Serena Williams now has a 17-11 career record against her sister, who made her deepest run in a Grand Slam draw since the 2009 Wimbledon final.

Kontinen Peers Claim First Grand Slam Title

John Peers, born and raised in Melbourne, captured men’s doubles title alongside Henri Kontinen from Finland, winning the final 7-5, 7-5 against US-American siblings Bob and Mike Bryan. The fourth seeds closed the encounter after 74 minutes.

“It is an amazing feeling. I was looking through some of the names on the trophy. To be alongside some of the guys and idols I looked up to in the past is something that hasn’t sunk in yet. To be able to do that and be a part of what Australian legacy has been with tennis is something I was dreaming of as a child. To be able to do it and hopefully continue to do that is something I will continue to work towards,” Peers was happy.

“It’s a pretty good start. Better than last year, I think. I think we lost second round here last year,” Kontinen added with a smile. “Obviously this already puts us in there going towards London, end of the year. But we’ll do the same thing as we did last year. We’re going to have bad weeks, unfortunately. But everybody does, bad matches. We’re just going to do the same thing, stay positive, try to improve individually and as a team. We’ll see how the year ends.”