The release of the historical film ‘Ruler Richard’ has provided Serena and Venus Williams with ample opportunity to reflect on their illustrious and enduring lives.

Narrated from the perspective of Richard Williams, Serena and Venus’ father, the film focuses on the remarkable duo’s formative years. It also delves into a few significant on-court moments that seemingly shaped both Serena and Venus’ characters.

In a recent interview with USA Today, Venus Williams reminisced about a match she played against Arantxa Sanchez Vicario at the age of 14. Making her debut at the Bank of the West Classic tournament, Venus led the then-World No. 2 by a set and a break. However, the Spaniard took a restroom break while trailing 1-3 in the subsequent set, after which Venus “self-destructed.”

“I didn’t know what I was doing,” Williams recalled. “I меan, I had a huge lead. She took a bathroom break and I fell apart. I was young. Take a break on me now, it’s like, ‘Great! You can keep going.’ But at the time, would I have won that match without the break? You can’t ever ꜱаy. But probably.”

Venus Williams lost 11 straight games and ended up falling to a 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 defeat. The American said she remembers being devastated after the match, which, according to her, she should have won.

However, Venus quickly added that she took away some important lessons from the loss. She said the match gave her the motivation to keep on improving and also taught her not to be too hагd on herself.

“I just remember distinctly thinking, ‘Gosh, I should have won that match. I shouldn’t be going home,’” she said. “And I knew I had to improve myself. I think that’s what I took out of it. It wasn’t anything I ever said to anyone, but inside, I knew that I should have won. So I guess I was hагd on myself at the time.”

Richard Williams, who introduced his daughters to the sport of tennis, had a slightly different perspective on Venus Williams’ loss to Sanchez Vicario.

Richard said while he was “pleased” with his daughter’s performance, he was also “glad” that she lost. He reasoned that the encounter allowed the then-14-year-old Venus Williams to take some extra time off tennis and enjoy being a teenager.

“I’m pleased with her performance, but I’m also happy that she lost,” Richard Williams said after the match. “It gives us a chance to go home and let her be a 14-year-old for the rest of the year.”