Rising Venus reaches hallowed 700 club

Venus Williams yesterday beat Julia Goerges at the Wuhan Open to reach 700 career wins. Her tally makes her the only active women’s player to achieve the milestone other than her sister Serena. The 35-year-old, still winning despite her an on-going fight with Sjogren’s Syndrome, said she had no idea she was approaching the milestone before her 6-4, 6-3 victory in China. “I didn’t know. I’m glad nobody told me before. I would have been a little bit nervous,” the American told reporters. She added, with a smile, that her first thought now was how long it would take her to get to 800. Williams, who is the oldest player at Wuhan and turned professional in 1994, when Goerges was not yet six, becomes only the ninth player to reach 700 wins. Martina Navratilova (1,442 wins), Chris Evert (1,309) and Steffi Graf (902) head the list, while Serena Williams hit 700 in April and is now on 737. Williams was diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome, an immune system disorder, in 2011 and later switched to a vegan and raw foods diet to curb its symptoms. This year she won her 46th career title in Auckland and reached both the Australian Open and Wimbledon quarter-finals, losing to Serena in New York. Williams shows few signs of slowing down and she said she now had her sights set on next year’s Rio Olympics, where she will hope to add to her haul of four gold medals. “The Olympics - that will be awesome to be able to play there, represent the US again. That will be an honour,” she said. During her career Williams, now ranked 24th, has spent 11 weeks as the world number one and won seven Grand Slam singles titles, the last one in 2008. NAMPA/AFP