Axial tilt is sometimes defined such that 0° is when the orbital and rotational axes align, including direction of rotation; Venus has a tilt of 177° by this standard, because of its retrograde rotation compared to the majority of the planets.

Possibly because that would explain its rotation being the reverse of the other planets(except Venus). If it started rotating the same way as the other planets and were rotated 82 degrees, it would still be rotating in the same direction as the other planets, where as by rotating 98 degrees, the rotation is reversed.