After the upcoming grand slam in the United States, Serena Williams, arguably the greatest female tennis player in history, will call it a wrap. The tennis steamroller announced her intention to stop playing tennis at a news conference held on her own court.
Many millions of people around the world have watched her matches. The multiple Grand Slam tennis champion is now prepared to hang up her racket and enjoy a well-earned retirement.
With one hand showing that she was unsure of what would happen next and the other laughing it off, she remarked, “I guess there’s just a light at the end of the tunnel.”
Serena Williams pressers have always been greeted by chuckles, but not this time. For one of the top female athletes in the world, the news of her impending retirement means a lot.
“Freedom. Yeah. I love playing though, it’s like amazing. But, you know, it’s like, I can’t do this forever,” she reasoned.
“I’ve been reluctant to admit that I have to move on from playing tennis. It’s like a taboo topic. It comes up, and I start to cry. I think the only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist,” she told Vogue.
It must be emphasized that Ms. Williams does not find the word “retirement” to be very comforting.
“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,” she said.
It turns out that one of Ms. Williams’ motivation for ending her professional career was family life.
“In the last year, Alexis and I have been trying to have another child, and we recently got some information from my doctor that put my mind at ease and made me feel that whenever we’re ready, we can add to our family. I definitely don’t want to be pregnant again as an athlete. I need to be two feet into tennis or two feet out,” she confessed to Vogue.
It goes without saying that Ms. Williams will leave a void in the tennis community as she makes one of the greatest sacrifices a professional could make for her daughter Olympia, her husband Alexis Ohanian, and a potential second child. But new stars are created every day, like Polish player Iga Witek, who is ranked first in the WTA. It won’t be long before new, brave players are identified.
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