image credit:thinkingheads.com
Serena Williams, the owner of 23 Grand Slam singles trophies, will retire from tennis after the U.S. Open this summer. Williams, 40, confirmed her plans on the website of Vogue magazine on Tuesday.
image credit:express.co.uk
She explained her decision to competing desires for another kid while competing against the world's finest tennis players."I'm going to miss that version of myself, that person that played tennis," Williams remarked, before adding, "And I'm going to miss you."
image credit:vox.com
"I'm 41 this month, and something has to give," Williams stated, presumably referring to the print magazine's September publication date.
image credit:sportskeeda.com
Williams holds the Open Era record for the most Grand Slam singles titles won by a woman or a man. The only tennis player with more major singles titles is Margaret Court of Australia, whose record of 24 victories has withstood Williams' inspired assault in recent years.
image credit:eonline.com
Williams will start the U.S. Open's main event with a protected ranking of No. 16 on August 29. The tournament, which lasts for the majority of the next two weeks, will undoubtedly draw tributes to one of the greatest tennis players to ever pick up a racket.
image credit:mirror.co.uk
Williams is come full circle in many ways by calling it a career next month. When she won her maiden Grand Slam singles title at the US Open in 1999, she was only 17 years old.
image credit:facebook.com
I started playing tennis with the intention of winning the US Open," she explained. "I didn't think any further than that. Then I just kept on winning."
image credit:justjared.com
Williams avoided discussing her own legacy as she announced her retirement, but she was clearly enthusiastic about her business efforts, which included supporting startups, particularly those run by women and people of colour.
image credit:allure.com
I wrote one of the very first checks for MasterClass," she explained. "It's one of 16 unicorns — startups valued at more than $1 billion — that Serena Ventures has invested, including Tonal, Impossible Foods, Noom, and Esusu, to name a few."
image credit:pagesix.com