Serena Williams has revealed fellow sporting legend Tiger Woods offered his advice before she announced her impending retirement from tennis. The American great hinted at stepping away from the sport following her first win since June 2021 at the Canada Open yesterday evening.
But earlier today, the 40-year-old revealed in the latest issue of Vogue that she will hang up her racket, most likely after the US Open. In the piece she credited golf icon Woods for helping her come to a decision regarding her future.
Woods is also in the twilight phase of his career and battled back to compete again following a devastating car crash last year which looked to have ended his career. “This spring, I had the itch to get back on the court for the first time in seven months,” Williams wrote in Vogue.
“I was talking to Tiger Woods, who’s a friend, and I told him I needed his advice on my tennis career. I said, ‘I don’t know what to do: I think I’m over it, but maybe I’m not over it.’ He’s Tiger, and he was adamant that I be a beast the same way he is!
“He said, ‘Serena, what if you just gave it two weeks? You don’t have to commit to anything. You just go out on the court every day for two weeks and give it your all and see what happens.’ I said, ‘All right, I think I can do that.’ And I didn’t do it. But a month later, I gave it a try. And it felt magical to pick up a racket again. And I was good. I was really good.
“I went back and forth about whether to play Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open after that. As I’ve said, this whole evolution thing has not been easy for me.”
Williams has won seven Wimbledon titles, seven Australian Opens, six US Opens and three French Opens - with her last major triumph coming at Melbourne Park in 2017. She stated she would love to end her career by equalling Margaret Court’s record of 24 majors.
"Unfortunately I wasn't ready to win Wimbledon this year," she added in the article. "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 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." The emotional piece also read: "I’m turning 41 this month, and something’s got to give. 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.”
