Serena Williams, one of the greatest athletes of all time and 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, has announced her retirement from professional tennis, hinting that she could step away after the upcoming US Open.
In a Vogue column, Williams, 40, described her intention to end her playing career as an “evolution” away from tennis. “I’ve never liked the word retirement,” he wrote. “Maybe the best word to describe what I’m doing is evolution. I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, towards other things that are important to me.”
Williams has spent much of the last few years off the court preparing for when she decided to move on, including starting a venture capital firm, Serena Ventures, and investing in various organizations. However, he explained that one of his main reasons for retirement is his intention to further expand his family. Williams gave birth to her first child, Alexis Olympia, in 2017.
“I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family. I don’t think it’s fair,” Williams wrote. “If I were a guy, I wouldn’t be writing this because I’d be playing and winning while my wife did the physical work of growing our family.”
In a storied career spanning nearly three decades from her beginnings on the public courts of Compton, California, Williams has won an Open-era record 23 Grand Slam singles titles, winning a total of $94,588,910 in prizes and more. in guarantees Williams fell short of the all-time record of 24, a lesser record set by Margaret Court.
Despite the various outside interests Williams has enjoyed since her youth, Williams has also consolidated one of the longest careers of all time at the sport’s highest level, behind only her 42-year-old sister Venus. He has embarked on countless comebacks, including twice after suffering life-threatening pulmonary embolisms.
Williams turned pro at age 14 in 1995 and was a teenage phenom, winning her first Grand Slam title at age 17 at the 1999 US Open. Despite the mileage on her legs now, Williams contrast her feelings with the apparently happy retirements of Ashleigh Barty, 26, in March and Caroline Wozniacki, 32, her close friend, in 2020.
“There is no happiness in this matter for me,” he wrote. “I know it’s not what you usually say, but I feel so much pain. It’s the hardest thing I can ever imagine. I hate it. I hate being at this crossroads. I keep saying to myself: I wish it was easy, but it’s not. I’m torn: I don’t want it to end, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s to come.”
Unlike many other greats, Williams’ success wasn’t just limited to singles. She and her sister, Venus, also formed one of the greatest doubles partnerships in history, winning 14 Grand Slam women’s doubles titles despite playing a limited doubles schedule. In addition, she has won four Olympic gold medals, three of them in doubles, and two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles in 1998.
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Their achievements take on even greater significance given that they represent the first African-American Grand Slam champions since Althea Gibson in 1958. Both have dominated a predominantly white, high-class and prohibitively expensive sport. Williams’ serve, power and athleticism have fueled her success, but so have her intelligence, problem-solving ability and mindset.
In her lengthy and emotional essay in Vogue, Williams explained that after injuring her hamstring at Wimbledon last year and taking a year out of the sport, she wasn’t sure she would ever return. An argument with legendary golfer Tiger Woods brought her back to the driving range, which she enjoyed enough to begin a full comeback. Williams made her singles comeback at Wimbledon in June, losing in the first round to France’s Harmony Tan.
This week Williams competes at the National Bank Open in Toronto, where she defeated Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-3, 6-4 on Monday to win her first singles match since June 2021. After Canada, she is scheduled to will compete in the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, Ohio, followed by the US Open beginning in late August.
Despite explaining her reasons for leaving the sport in surprising depth, Williams did not explicitly state that she will definitely retire at the US Open. The end point, however, is clearly in sight. “Oh my god, I like tennis,” he wrote. “But now, the countdown has begun. I have to focus on being a mother, my spiritual goals, and finally discovering a different, but exciting, Serena. I’m going to enjoy these next few weeks.”