After losing to Ajla Tomljanovi in the third round of the U.S. Open on Friday, Serena Williams appeared to bid tennis adieu with one last spin. Since Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam champion, revealed in early August that she would be "growing away" from the game, many fans dreaded seeing her leave the court in the loss. Williams, the victorious rival, appeared to give a ray of optimism that her career would not be ended right away.
In her post-match interview when asked if she would contemplate coming back, Williams replied, “I don’t think so, but you never know. I don’t know.” Williams may have responded emotionally in the heat of the moment, but there were probably others hoping she would decide to delay leaving the sport she has dominated for more than 20 years. However, it turns out that she does seem to be focusing on the future.
When asked if there had been any reconsideration of her retirement during the news conference following the match, Williams made the aforementioned statement. After she appeared to hint to the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd that she could yet have more to offer, she was also questioned about what it would take for her to return.
“I don’t know. I’m not thinking about that,” said Williams, who turns 41 in 24 days. “I always did love Australia, though [smiling]. But yeah, you know what, I’ve come a long way since last year at Wimbledon. Just not sure if that was my last moment or not. Making it a different moment I think is much better. It takes a lot of work to get here. Clearly, I’m still capable. It takes a lot more than that.
"I'm ready to be a mom and explore a different version of Serena."
 Sports Illustrated (@SInow) September 3, 2022
Simply the best  #SerenaWilliams
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“I’m ready to, like, be a mom, explore a different version of Serena. Technically in the world, I’m still super young, so I want to have a little bit of life while I’m still walking.”
As Williams alluded to, it has been a difficult year since she returned from a ruptured hamstring she suffered at Wimbledon in June 2021 less than three months ago. Williams, who had won a doubles match at a Wimbledon 2022 practice event this past June, was defeated by Harmony Tan in the opening round of The Championships.
Williams' curtain call provided fans all over the world one more look at the renowned champion on one of the biggest venues in the sport in what was just her seventh singles match of 2022. It was the longest U.S. match ever when she battled Tomljanovi for three hours and five minutes. a career-opening match for Williams.
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