When both the Williams sisters entered the top ten and started facing off in tournaments, rumors of match fixing started to circulate. John McEnroe, while commenting on the 2000 Wimbledon semifinal between the two sisters, said that "Serena may not be allowed to win. Richard [Williams] may have something to say about this."wine, Steve (July 6, 2000), "Williams Sister Giving Tennis a Lift with Family Feud". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Retrieved April 29, 2017. After losing to Venus at the Indian Wells quarterfinals in 2001, Elena Dementieva claimed that Richard Williams had decided the results of matches between the sisters."ASAP Sports Transcripts – Tennis – 2001 – TMS – Indian Wells, Women – March 14 – Elena Dementieva" . asapsports.com. Shortly after that, Venus pulled out of her Indian Wells semifinal match against Serena at the last minute, claiming tendinitis; this led to much speculation in the press, and some spectators demanded their money back. The final, in which Serena defeated Kim Clijsters, was marred by the behavior of the crowd toward Williams and her family.
When both the Williams sisters entered the top ten and started facing off in tournaments, rumors of match fixing started to circulate. John McEnroe, while commenting on the 2000 Wimbledon semifinal between the two sisters, said that "Serena may not be allowed to win. Richard [Williams] may have something to say about this."wine, Steve (July 6, 2000), "Williams Sister Giving Tennis a Lift with Family Feud". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Retrieved April 29, 2017. After losing to Venus at the Indian Wells quarterfinals in 2001, Elena Dementieva claimed that Richard Williams had decided the results of matches between the sisters."ASAP Sports Transcripts – Tennis – 2001 – TMS – Indian Wells, Women – March 14 – Elena Dementieva" . asapsports.com. Shortly after that, Venus pulled out of her Indian Wells semifinal match against Serena at the last minute, claiming tendinitis; this led to much speculation in the press, and some spectators demanded their money back. The final, in which Serena defeated Kim Clijsters, was marred by the behavior of the crowd toward Williams and her family.