Growing up, Venus and Serena Williams were taught to be humble yet bold. However, some circumstances were difficult. Neither of the sisters could escape from them. The crowd had seen Venus and Serena Williams till that time and they wanted to see more. And when during the semi-finals of the 2001 Indian Wells, the elder sister decided to withdraw because of an injury, Serena faced the consequences from the crowd.

Indian Wells stayed off the map of the Williams sisters for a very long time. The reason was the crowd’s insensitivity to the whole situation which made it difficult for the 19-year-old Serena Williams to stay strong.

Serena Williams once left dilapidated by the insensitive crowd

The 23-time Grand Slam champion has had many struggles in her career to get through. From facing tough opponents to overcoming serious injuries. However, what was most difficult for the player was to get through a crowd. During the 2001 Indian Wells semi-finals, the Williams sisters were scheduled to play a match together. But Venus decided to stay out owing to her injury. However, the crowd was not warned about this situation. They reacted showing their frustration to the sister. It assumed that the match was fixed to let one of the sisters win.

They called out and booed at her and a 19-year-old, though put a bold mask up in the front of the crowd. However, she could not do the same during the changeover because the cancellation of the match happened at the last minute. Serena Williams said, “I was crying in my towel at the changeover. I would cry, and I knew that I had to go on.”

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After that, the Williams sisters boycotted the Indian Wells tournament for a very long time. However, she forgave the crowd for its nature and joined the tour back again in 2015.

Why did Serena come back to Indian Wells in 2015? 

In 2001, the player won the tournament by defeating Kim Clijsters. However, the victory was not savory as the crowd booed and jeered at her and her family. This left a traumatic mark on young Serena. However, she saw the changes in the sport and how WTA took a stand for her and Venus against racism.

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Though, still a difficult choice, Williams went on to go ahead with it as she felt that it was time for her to move on too.