The 40-year-old woman, who won 23 grand slams in her career and sat at the top of the WTA rankings for 319 weeks, determined women’s tennis events from 1999 until today. She had talent and a physical fund from God. Her personality far exceeded the tennis environment. She has become a world celebrity whose voice has weight, whether it’s tennis, women’s rights or race equality.
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But even this great player often showed dark sides. He can argue and rage as well as he can pound balloons. She was notorious for tantrums on and off the court, shouting, insults to referees, broken rackets, and unfair accusations that they only allowed themselves to be because she was a woman. Sometimes she showed the mores of a provocative star.
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I really think the champion is not defined by his winnings, but by how he can recover when he falls.
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Her typical outcome was the finals at the 2018 US Open, where she lost to Naomi Osaka. She was penalized for violating the code at the time, and even coach Patrick Mouratoglou himself admitted that he had coached her illegally in the second set. Serena was fined a total of $ 17,000 at the time.
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But let’s jump to the end of her rich career. Even the last three years have been impressive, even though it was like a swing.
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When she returned after maternity leave in 2020, she won her first singles title as a mother at the ASB Classic 2020. It was a historic breakthrough, as she became the first woman in the professional era with at least one title in four decades.
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She was placed at No. 3 at the US Open and eventually advanced to the semifinals, where she lost to Victoria Azarenkova. Another historical breakthrough, ie two instead. It was the first meeting of two mothers in the grand slam semifinals and at the same time Serena became the first player in history to reach the semifinals of the Grand Slam and the US Open in four decades.
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Injuries, injuries, injuries
Then the delayed French Open 2020 was played and the famous American recorded another milestone there, unfortunately not so pleasant. She resigned due to injury and for the first time since 2006 did not reach the Grand Slam final.
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But it wouldn’t be Serena Williams if she gave up easily. The following year, she started the Yarra Valley Classic, where she resigned again due to a right shoulder injury. But at the Australian Open, as deployed 10, she was ready again.
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In the end, she lost in the semifinals to Naomi Osaka. She beat two “heavy” weights in front of her – the 2nd seeded Simona Halepová and the 7th Aryna Sabalenková. At a press conference after the match, they asked her if she was saying goodbye to tennis and retiring. She replied with typical militancy, “If I ever said goodbye, I wouldn’t tell anyone.”
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In May, she played her 1000th match in her career, but suffered further injuries in June – during the first set in the first round of Wimbledon, she slipped unhappily and had to resign from the tournament in tears. In August, she prematurely finished at the US Open 2021, this time due to a leg injury. It dropped to 41st place in the world, which was its worst position in the last 15 years.
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And then the decline continued. In March this year, 241st, eventually 1204. Few people would bet that they would still return to the courts. In the meantime, she was very socially active, promoting a film about her father King Richard and appearing at the Oscars, among other things.
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But then she tried again – now in June at Eastbourne International, where she managed the first and second rounds with Tunisian Ons Jaburova. At the beginning of next week, she should also enter the Wimbledon championship, where she received a wild card.
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Wimbledon, that’s a big chapter for Serena at all. She won it seven times. The last time it took place without her or without sister Venus was in 1996. Do you know who won then? The legendary Steffi Graf was her seventh and final title.
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“I really think the champion is not defined by his winnings, but by how he can recover when he falls,” she said once, and that is exactly what she describes. If she didn’t think so, she wouldn’t be at Wimbledon now.
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Maybe her last.
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