Wimbledon 2012 Update: Williams Sisters Back on Top With Doubles Crown

The Williams Sisters are back on top, as on Sunday at Wimbledon, Venus and Serena defeated Andrea Hlavackova & Lucie Hradecka 7-5, 6-4 to capture the 2012 Women’s Doubles Championship. The win marked the 13th Grand Slam Doubles title together as both Venus and Serena have fought back to the pro tour after a few years of medial setbacks and illness. Serena suffered a career-threatening foot injury and a life-threatening pulmonary embolism, while Venus has returned to action after a battle with the auto-immune illness, Sjogren’s Syndrome. 

"It’s amazing," Venus said. "I was inspired by Serena’s singles performance. It’s wonderful to play on the court with her, and I couldn’t have done it without her."

Earlier in the day, Serena captured the Women’s Singles Title at Wimbledon after her 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 win over Agnieszka Radwanska.

"Doubles is definitely more fun than singles," said Serena. "At the same time, the last thing I want to do is let Venus down in doubles—in singles it’s okay if I let myself down, but I don’t want to let her down." 

On Centre Court on Sunday, after Roger Federer defeated Andy Murray in the Men’s Singles Finals, Mike Bryan & Lisa Raymond of the United States won the Wimbledon Mixed-Doubles Title after a  6-3, 5-7, 6-4 win over the number two seeds, Leander Paes of India & Elena Vesnina of Russia. It was Bryan’s first mixed-doubles Wimbledon crown and Raymond’s second. 

"It was a blast playing with Lisa all week," said Bryan. "Obviously, the match was up and down. We could have closed it out there in straights. Unfortunately, I got broken. She’s pretty resilient. We fought through the adversity. She kept raising her game and carried me through the finish."

And in the Men’s Doubles Finals, wild cards Jonathan Marray of Britain & Frederik Nielsen of Denmark upset Robert Lindstedt of Sweden & Horia Tecau of Romania, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3 on Centre Court. Marray & Nielsen shocked the crowds when they beat Bob & Mike Bryan in the semifinals and the duo had never played in a tour-level event before Wimbledon.

“It means more because it’s Wimbledon," said Neilsen. "Maybe because of my family history, I have a different relationship with Wimbledon. That’s possible, but I don’t think the fact that my granddad used to do well is going to make it even more special. I think the fact that it is just Wimbledon, it carries its name by itself pretty well.”

Nielsen is the grandson of 1953 and 1955 singles finalist Kurt Nielsen.