AUGUST 9, 2022
US Tennis Star Serena Williams. – Photograph: John Walton/PA
Serena Williams has confirmed she will retire from tennis after a career that has seen her win 23 grand slam singles titles.
The 40-year-old broke the news in an article for Vogue.
“I have never liked the word retirement,” Williams wrote. “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.”
Williams said her decision had been influenced by the desire to expand her family. She gave birth to her first child, Olympia, in 2017.
“I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family. I don’t think it’s fair,” Williams wrote. “If I were a guy, I wouldn’t be writing this because I’d be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the physical labor of expanding our family.”
In the article, Williams suggested her final tournament will be the US Open, which starts later this month and runs through to the start of September.
