From correspondents in Americas, 04:33 PM IST

London: Tennis dad Richard Williams took his leave of the All England club with a day to spare before daughters Venus and Serena met in their third Wimbledon sibling showdown final.

Williams and his girlfriend cleared out of town and headed back to Florida due to the father's fear of watching his children perform against each other on the big stage.

'He went home,' confirmed five-times champion Venus. 'He always tries to give us the best of advice, so I'm sure he said something to Serena, I guess. She didn't tell me, but basically he's (our) coach all the way through.'

Added Serena: 'He said he did his job and his job was done, so I guess he's feeling good. No matter what happens he's for sure going to be a winner.'

Williams announced this week that he would not watch the final, saying he didn't relish seeing his children 'fight.'

(Staff Writer, © IANS)