Sporting great Serena Williams announces emotional retirement from tennis
9 August 2022, 15:34
The 23-time grand-slam champion Serena Williams has announced her imminent retirement from tennis, telling fans she's "ready for what's next".
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Serena won her first singles match for more than a year at the National Bank Open in Toronto on Monday evening but has revealed in a first-person piece for Vogue that she has decided to end her career.
"I'm here to tell you that I'm evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me," she wrote.
Serena revealed her motivation behind calling it quits is the desire to have a second child.
She explained that she was trying for another baby during her absence from tennis for a year until Wimbledon this summer, when she was defeated by France's Harmony Tan in the first round.
She returned to the sport early in 2018 following the birth of daughter Olympia the previous year, having been pregnant when she won her last slam title at the Australian Open.
"Unfortunately I wasn't ready to win Wimbledon this year," she wrote.
"And I don't know if I will be ready to win New York. But I'm going to try. And the lead-up tournaments will be fun.
"I know there's a fan fantasy that I might have tied Margaret (Court on 24 slam singles titles) that day in London, then maybe beat her record in New York, and then at the trophy ceremony say, 'See ya!'
"I get that. It's a good fantasy. But I'm not looking for some ceremonial, final on-court moment. I'm terrible at goodbyes, the world's worst."
Serena has committed to playing at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati next week as well as the US Open later this month, and it appears that will be her final tournament.
She admitted the decision to retire aged 41 was a "painful one", but said "something's got to give".
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Serena Williams beaten by Harmony Tan in late-night thriller on Centre Court
"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."
Serena has had a glittering career and has been one of the world's most influential sportswomen.
She has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles - the most in the Open era for any man or woman.
She also has four Olympic gold medals under her belt, seven Australian Open and Wimbledon titles, six US Open titles and three French Open titles.
