After the U.S. Open event, which starts later this month, Serena Williams announced on Tuesday that she was “developing away from tennis” and that she intended to leave the sport she dominated with 23 Grand Slam victories.
Williams defeated Spain’s Nuria Parrizas Diaz on Monday to go to the second round of the Toronto Open in just her second singles match since she resumed playing at Wimbledon in June after a year off.
Williams remarked in a Vogue story, “I have never liked the word retiring.
“Evolution may be the best word to use to describe what I’m doing. I’m here to let you know that I’m moving away from tennis and toward other priorities.
“I quietly founded Serena Ventures, a venture capital business, a few years ago. I soon afterward began a family. I want that family to expand.
Williams won her most recent Grand Slam in 2017 and has been on the hunt for an illusive 24th trophy that would tie her with Margaret Court, an Australian who owns the record for most major titles.
She has participated in four major finals since the birth of her daughter Olympia in 2017. As a result, she came tantalizingly close to accomplishing that milestone.
The former world number one Williams, who sought the counsel of her friend Tiger Woods before picking up a racket again this spring, said: “There are people who say I’m not the GOAT (greatest of all time) because I didn’t pass Court’s record, which she achieved before the “Open era” that began in 1968.
If I said I didn’t want that record, I’d be lying. Of course I do. However, I don’t actually think about her on a daily basis.
It was time to go in a “new route,” Williams subsequently stated in an Instagram post.
“The timer has started. I have to prioritize being a mother, achieving my spiritual objectives, and finding a new, interesting Serena.
Williams made her debut on the biggest platform when she won the 1999 U.S. Open, a match she would later go on to win five more times.
She also won seven Wimbledon titles, three French Open wins, and seven Australian Open titles during her illustrious career, which saw her dominate opponents like no other athlete.
John McEnroe, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, referred to Williams as “an icon.”
He told USA Today that she is on the same level as Tom Brady, LeBron James, and Michael Jordan. She’s comparable to one of the greatest athletes of all time in any sport, male or female.
Williams has won four Olympic gold medals in the following events: singles (2012), doubles (2014), and mixed doubles (2017).
Williams, who has earned the title of tennis’ fiercest rival and lost in the first round at Wimbledon, downplayed expectations for her final major.
I regret not having been prepared to win Wimbledon this year. Furthermore, I’m not sure if I’ll be prepared to win New York. I’ll try, though,” she wrote.
I’m aware that some fans think I could have tied Margaret that day in London and then maybe broken her record in New York. A good daydream, indeed. However, I’m not searching for a solemn, on-court moment.
“I’m the worst in the world at saying goodbye. But please know that I am more appreciative of you than words could ever explain.
Williams revealed that she and her husband, businessman and investor Alexis Ohanian, have been trying for a second child over the past year, a move that her daughter Olympia, 4, has wholeheartedly supported.
Before going to sleep, she will occasionally pray to Jehovah for a baby sibling, Williams noted.
While Williams was two months pregnant when she won the Australian Open in 2017, she has no desire in competing while pregnant again: “I need to be two feet into tennis or two feet out.”
I never wanted to have to decide between having a family and playing tennis.
But something has to give because I’ll be 41 (in September).
