serena williams defeated her older sister and fellow american venus 6-4, 6-4 to win the 2017 australian open singles championship in melbourne park. williams now has 23 major singles titles, one more than steffi graf of germany. the all-time leader is margaret court of australia with 24.
during the awards ceremony, williams said, "i really would like to take this moment to congratulate venus. there's no way i'd be at 23 titles, or i'd be at one. she's my inspiration. she's my world. thank you venus for inspiring me to be the best player i could be."
williams, 35, regained her number one ranking from angelique kerber of germany. kerber beat williams in the 2016 australian open, and became number one after winning the u.s. open last year. serena improved her career record against venus to 17-11, including 7-2 in major finals.
roger federer of switzerland defeated rafael nadal of spain 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to win the 2017 australian open singles championship in melbourne park. federer now has 18 major singles titles, which is the most all-time among men. federer improved his world ranking to #10 with his victory.
federer, 35, said afterwards, "against rafa it's always epic. this one means a lot to me because he's caused me problems over the years. federer beat four top 10 players - tomas berdych, kei nishikori, stan wawrinka and nadal - which is extraordinary; he missed six months last year due to injuries.
federer had not won a major since 2012 at wimbledon. his career record against nadal is now 23-12. federer said, "i'd like to congratulate rafa on an amazing comeback, too. i don't think either one of us thought we would be in the final at the australian open this year. i am happy for you. i would've been happy to lose to you tonight, too, really."
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