WIMBLEDON, England -- Thrilled as she was to win her fifth Wimbledon singles championship, Venus Williams dialed down her celebration.

No hopping in place and skipping to the net after match point, the way she's done so often on that Centre Court lawn. No giddy laughter and whoops of joy, as she's let out in the past.

Yesterday's title was different from her previous successes at the grass-court Grand Slam.

This title came at the expense of her younger sibling, Serena.

Reprising their Sister Slam Show in the Wimbledon final after a five-year hiatus, Venus and Serena Williams smacked big serves, hit hard strokes from all angles and chased down seemingly unreachable balls. Overcoming an early deficit, Venus beat Serena 7-5, 6-4 for her second consecutive title at the All England Club and seventh major championship overall.

Serena, who still leads Venus 8-7 in major titles, compiled more aces, 9-4, more total winners, 32-27, and fewer unforced errors, 11-13. But there was one key difference that tilted the other way: Venus was 4 for 7 converting break points, and Serena was 2 for 13.

"I'm definitely more in tune with my sister's feelings because one of us has to win and one of us has to lose," said seventh-seeded Venus, who also won Wimbledon in 2000, 2001, 2005 and last year.

"You could never detract from winning a Wimbledon, so of course it doesn't detract from that. But I'm definitely thinking about how my sister's feeling."

No. 6 Serena, meanwhile, was sullen as could be afterward, as though she had just finished losing to a stranger. Which, it turns out, was the way she tried to view Venus. That the champion's trophy stayed in the family did not ease the pain.

"It's definitely not any easier," Serena said. "I just look at her as another opponent at the end of the day."

Said their mother and coach, Oracene Price: "Well, you know, [Serena] is going to have to learn how to suck things up. Say, 'OK, I'm not going to win everything.'"

About 3½ hours after the singles final ended, Price's daughters returned to the same court, except then they were playing on the same side of the net.

A day that began with a meal together at the nearby house they're sharing ended with the sisters' seventh Grand Slam doubles championship -- a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur -- and a total family payday of more than $2.5 million.

Yesterday's earlier encounter was the seventh all-Williams Grand Slam singles final; only one other pair of sisters faced off for a major tournament title, and that was back in 1884 -- at the very first Wimbledon.

Williams vs. Williams finals became routine for a bit, when they met in six of eight Grand Slam title matches from the U.S. Open in 2001 through Wimbledon in 2003. Serena went 5-1 in those, including beating Venus at the All England Club in 2002 and 2003.

But big sister got some payback yesterday.

"I didn't want the same trend to keep happening," said Venus, who broke her own Wimbledon record yesterday with a 129 mph serve. "So I climbed a tiny little notch up. It's 2-5. Still behind, but I'm working on it."

Venus is 28 and Serena 26, and both have been ranked No. 1. But injuries slowed both, and the 2003 Wimbledon final was the last time they met to decide a championship.

Things were still a tad awkward yesterday after all these years -- for the 15,000 fans, who couldn't seem to get into picking someone to support, leading to a subdued atmosphere, and for chair umpire Carlos Ramos, who occasionally forgot to add the first name when announcing, "Advantage, Miss Williams."

The sisters' father, Richard, had already flown back to the U.S. because he can't stand to watch his daughters play each other.

Venus entered the tournament in the middle of an uneven season, with a 14-7 record and without so much as one title of any sort. As long has been the case, however, the grass brought out her best, and she didn't drop a set all fortnight -- not even against the woman she considers her toughest foe.

"If I was playing anyone else, I wouldn't have to face what I had to face today," Venus said.

. . .

In the men's double final yesterday, Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic defeated Jonas Bjorkman and Kevin Ullyet 7-6 (14-12), 6-7 (7-3), 6-3, 6-3.