Tennis ace Serena Williams has hinted at a surprising return to the sport, claiming she ‘has not retired.’ The 41-year-old, who last featured in the 2022 US Open, had previously stated that she will ‘evolve away’ from the sport, but her latest comments have sparked rumours of what could be a spectacular return.
Back in August, the 23 singles grand slam winner told Vogue magazine that she will focus on things that are ‘more important’ to her by moving away from the sport. Albeit not explicitly mentioned, Williams’ statement was assumed to be a retirement declaration, and the recently concluded US Open was thought of as her last competitive tournament.
However, at an event in San Francisco, she clarified her current career status by saying “I am not retired. The chances (of a return) are very high. You can come to my house, I have a court. I still haven’t really thought about it (retirement).”
“But I did wake up the other day and go on the court and for the first time in my life, (realized) that I’m not playing for a competition, and it felt really weird. It was like the first day of the rest of my life and I’m enjoying it, but I’m still trying to find that balance,” she further added.
Will Serena Williams Do a Tom Brady?
Earlier this year, American football quarterback Tom Brady made a sensational return to the sport, only forty days after he had announced his retirement. Relating her situation to the 45-year-old NFL star, Serena mentioned “You never know. I’ve been saying that I think Tom Brady started a really cool trend. I feel like tennis has given me so much. I feel like there’s no way I don’t want to be involved in tennis somehow in the future.”
However, the seven-time Wimbledon champion also kept options returning to tennis in a non-playing capacity open, as she concluded “I don’t know what that involvement is yet but I do know that I love the sport so much, I love the game. I love everything about it. It has just been such a light in my life. I definitely want to keep something involved in that.”
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