Serena Williams announced on August 9, 2022 the countdown to her retirement had begun from tennis after a career which brought her 23 Grand Slam singles titles. Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP
JUST IN: Serena Williams announces plans to step away from tennis
Legendary American tennis player Serena Williams has confirmed she is preparing to bid farewell to the game.
Serena Williams announced on August 9, 2022 the countdown to her retirement had begun from tennis after a career which brought her 23 Grand Slam singles titles. Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP
In an exclusive interview with Vogue magazine, Williams has admitted that she is “evolving” away from the sport after an iconic and illustrious tennis career, having claimed 23-time Grand Slam singles titles.
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The 40-year-old Williams has been chasing her 24th Grand Slam that would draw her level with Margaret Court on the all-time leaderboard.
She now looks set to feature at her home tournament, the US Open, scheduled to take place from 29 August to 11 September 2022 before heading into ‘retirement’.
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You can read some of the interesting insights from the fascinating interview with Williams below:
I have never liked the word retirement. It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me. I’ve been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution. I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me. A few years ago I quietly started Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm. Soon after that, I started a family. I want to grow that family.
But I’ve been reluctant to admit to myself or anyone else that I have to move on from playing tennis. Alexis, my husband, and I have hardly talked about it; it’s like a taboo topic. I can’t even have this conversation with my mom and dad. It’s like it’s not real until you say it out loud. It comes up, I get an uncomfortable lump in my throat, and I start to cry. The only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist! One thing I’m not going to do is sugarcoat this. I know that a lot of people are excited about and look forward to retiring, and I really wish I felt that way. Ashleigh Barty was number one in the world when she left the sport this March, and I believe she really felt ready to move on. Caroline Wozniacki, who is one of my best friends, felt a sense of relief when she retired in 2020.
Praise to these people, but I’m going to be honest. There is no happiness in this topic for me. I know it’s not the usual thing to say, but I feel a great deal of pain. It’s the hardest thing that I could ever imagine. I hate it. I hate that I have to be at this crossroads. I keep saying to myself, I wish it could be easy for me, but it’s not. I’m torn: I don’t want it to be over, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s next. I don’t know how I’m going to be able to look at this magazine when it comes out, knowing that this is it, the end of a story that started in Compton, California, with a little Black girl who just wanted to play tennis. This sport has given me so much. I love to win. I love the battle. I love to entertain.
