Serena Williams admitted to she felt she “just needed stop” and it was time for her to put her focus on some other things. Williams, who turned 41 this week, retired from professional tennis after this year’s US Open.
“I just needed to stop,” Williams said in the ‘History Talks’ interview, as quoted by Vanity Fair. “I always said I wanted to stop when I’m playing really good tennis and winning and beating good players.
For me, it’s really about things I want to do spiritually and spending time with my daughter and family. As a super hands-on mom, I can’t tell you how hard it was. I lost so many matches after I had Olympia because it was so hard to be on the court.
I feel like I’ve given so much of my life to tennis, my entire life, that it’s time to do something different for me and also work on other things. When you’re on the inside, you can’t see it. It’s completely different when you’re involved.
Williams: If I want to come back, I can
“I feel like if I want to come back, I definitely can still come back,” Williams added. Williams was out for a year before returning to singles action at Wimbledon. After going just 1/3 in her first three tournaments played, Williams returned to the practice court and gave her absolute best to prepare well for the US Open.
At the US Open, Williams performed better as she ousted Danka Kovinic and second-seeded Anett Kontaveit to progress into the third round. In the third round, Williams lost after falling short to Ajla Tomljanovic in a three-setter.
Williams didn’t win the US Open, but she proved that she was still able to play on a good level. Many were especially impressed by Williams’ victory over second-seeded Kontaveit.