Venus and Serena Williams in saris

I’ve always liked Venus and Serena Williams, not just because they’re great tennis players, but also because they’re usually good sports. If it were possible for the sisters to move up a notch in my book, the photo on the right (from The Hindu, via SAJAforum) did the trick. (Here’s another photo.) They wore the saris at a players party on the eve of the Bangalore Open.

The sisters donned the traditional Indian costume – complete with
gold earrings and bindis on their foreheads – as they joined fellow
competitors at the Southern India bash. While Venus – who has a keen
interest in style and trained as a fashion designer – stepped out in a
cerulean blue affair, Serena had opted for a striking saffron creation
which revealed her uber-toned stomach.

Both colours have a special significance in India, where blue is
associated Lord Krishna and represents calm, while saffron orange — the
country’s favourite hue — is considered auspicious as well as sacred. [Link]

An auspicious color indeed. Serena won the tournament, so perhaps we’ll be seeing her in saffron orange again.  Unlike her sister, she’s open to the idea, as she indicated to Madhavdas Gopalkrishnan.

Madhav: Is this the last time you will be wearing a saree?

Serena:
No, not at all. I love India and this is my first time in the country.
I hope to come back here a lot more often and wear more beautiful and
colourful sarees. [Link]

That may not make everyone in India happy. At least one writer, Kimi Dangor of India Today, didn’t care for the sari look.

… although the siblings pack quite a punch on the court, their sari-clad look turned out to be a definite double fault. [Link]

Far be it for me to question Dangor’s judgment. I’ve got a feeling she knows a thing or two about double faults.