Serena Williams has been the talk of the sports world this week as she plays what might be her final tennis tournament.
And story keeps getting better.
Tuesday night at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow, New York, in a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium, Williams, 40, won her second-round match against the tournament’s No. 2 seed, Anett Kontaveit, 7-6, 2-6, 6-2.
“There’s still a little left in me,” Williams said with a smile during her on-court interview. “This is what I do best. I love a challenge and I’m rising to the challenge.”
The win moves her to the third round Friday against 29-year-old Australian Ajla Tomljanovic.
Among the thousands of adoring fans was none other than Tiger Woods.
Sitting two seats over from Williams’ older sister Venus, Woods stood and cheered and fist-pumped during the match.
“It was a privilege to watch greatness,” he later said on social media.
What a night. pic.twitter.com/dHl9HFBDnr
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 1, 2022
Williams has 23 Grand Slam Titles, six of them at the U.S. Open. She now has 23 wins in her past 25 matches against someone ranked No. 1 or No. 2.
Williams says she credits Woods as “one of the main reasons” she still plays.
