By Bill Scott Jul 4, 2005, 9:09 GMT
London - With her tennis career now back on track after a third Wimbledon title in six years, Venus Williams is still not prepared to let her sport dictate her life.
Venus Williams of the US holds the Wimbledon championship trophy. EPA/FABRICE COFFRINI
"Tennis is what I do, it's all consuming," said the 25-year-old who beat Lindsay Davenport at the weekend for the third time in a Grand Slam final.
"But at the same time I have to realise this is just one part of my life.
"This is only one stage of my life, and I'll move on from this one day. To make sure I have everything in check and that I don't live and die with each win or loss."
Former world No. 1 Williams, now holder of five majors after two U.S. Open crowns and her Wimbledon hat-trick, has temporarily silenced the knockers who have written her off due to a variety of competing off-court interests.
With interior design the other big serving on her plate, Williams has been accused of giving less than 100 percent all the time to the sporting profession which has earned her and sister Serena multi-millions of dollars.
But Venus remains convinced she's bound for continuing glory after coming good on grass a month after exiting the French Open in the third round to Bulgarian teenager Sesil Karatantcheva.
The Florida player now faces a Fed Cup date against Russia next weekend on clay in Moscow with Davenport her teammate. Williams is assuming that hangover feelings from the hard-fought final won't be a problem.
"We play together next week. I'm sure we'll be a good team against Russia," Williams said, adding: "If I wasn't out there playing, and if it wasn't Serena, I definitely would have rooted for Lindsay to get this title."
Williams now owns 33 career titles with prize money in excess of 15-million dollars.
"This win has special meaning," she said. "I was the 14th seed, I wasn't supposed to win. I don't know what I'll take from it, (but) it's definitely a lot harder losing than winning."
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