<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jan/SERENASLAM-29.jpg" alt="" />USA&rsquo;s Serena Williams with the Australian Open trophy on Saturday. Pic/AP
Melbourne: Serena Williams held up a Grand Slam winner&rsquo;s trophy for the 23rd time, celebrating her unrivalled place in history, and received a congratulatory letter and a pair of custom-made shoes from Michael Jordan, the name most synonymous with No. 23.
Venus Williams got to watch from close range again, and shed tears more of joy than regret after being beaten in a major final. Serena won the all-Williams final, the ninth in Grand Slam history and the second in Australia, 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday night to return to World No. 1. With her record seventh Australian Open title, Serena moved ahead of Steffi Graf for the most major titles in the Open era.
The Williams sisters are close. They started out playing together in Compton, California, hardly a hotbed for tennis, with their father Richard and mother Oracene as coach and mentor. And they still practice and travel together around the world.
&ldquo;I really would like to take this moment to congratulate Venus, she&rsquo;s an amazing person &mdash; she&rsquo;s my inspiration, Serena said. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way I would be at 23 without her &mdash; there&rsquo;s no way I would be at one without her. Thank you Venus for inspiring me to be the best player I can be and inspiring me to work hard.&rdquo;

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