Tennis – US Open – Flushing Meadows, New York, United States – September 2, 2022 Serena Williams of the U.S. during a news conference after losing her third-round match to Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
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NEW YORK, Sept. 2 (Reuters) – Serena Williams said she wants to be remembered as a fighter and is proud of the impact she’s had on tennis as she most likely drew the curtain on her historic career at the US Open on Friday.
“The fight, I’m such a fighter,” she said when asked how she wanted to be remembered after her 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-1 third-round loss to Ajla Tomljanovic , which she stated endgame.
“I feel like I really brought something to tennis, a different look, the fist pumps, the just crazy intensity. Passion is a really good word,” she told reporters.
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Serena and her sister Venus took the tennis world by storm when they emerged from the courts of crime-ridden Compton, California as teenagers and dominated and transformed the predominantly white sport.
On the pitch, she thanked her family, friends and fans for an “incredible journey”.
“Honestly, I’m so grateful that I had this moment and that I’m Serena,” she told reporters.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion highlighted the 2015 French Open, where she battled severe flu symptoms, to complete her second “Serena Slam” – four consecutive Grand Slam titles – as a career highlight.
“That’s definitely the one I’m taking with me because I almost died in that event,” she said. “Somehow I won. So that was pretty awesome.”
The 40-year-old mother of Olympia surpassed expectations at the final Major of the year, turning back the clock to beat world number two Anett Kontaveit and save five match points against Tomljanovic in a riveting three-set bout.
The unbroken power she has displayed in New York has had some questioning if she is truly ready to “evolve” away from tennis to focus on growing her family and business interests, as she announced last month.
“I do not know. I don’t think about that,” she said.
“But I’ve always loved Australia,” she said with a smile, referring to the Australian Open in January.
Whether on or off the court, she said she will stay connected to the sport she transcended for years to come.
“Tennis has been such a big part of my life, I can’t imagine not being there,” she said.
“I don’t see a future without it.”
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Reporting by Rory Carroll in New York
Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Rory Caroll
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