With her victory over sister Venus in the Australian Open final early Saturday morning, Serena Williams won her 23rd Grand Slam title, surpassing the previous mark set by Steffi Graf. Following the match, Serena delivered a speech, expressing her gratitude towards her older sister and reflecting on Venus's impact on her career.

“I really would like to take this moment to congratulate Venus. She’s an amazing person. There’s no way I would be at 23 without her. There’s no way I’d be at one without her," she said. "She’s the only reason that I’m standing here today. She’s the only reason that the Williams sisters exist.”

As Venus fought back tears, Serena continued to praise her sister for her Australian Open run. "So thank you Venus for inspiring me to be the best player that I could be and inspiring me to work hard," Williams said. "Every time you won this week, I felt like 'I’ve got to win too,' so thank you so much. Thank you. She deserves an incredible round of applause. She’s made an amazing comeback. I definitely, definitely think she’ll be standing here next year, and I don’t like the word 'comeback.' She’s never left. She’s been such a great champion—so thank you, Venus.”

With her Australian Open final victory, Williams will regain the No. 1 spot that she held down for 186 consecutive weeks before losing it in September.

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