Serena Williams: Farewell performance as an icon - "She changed the game"
The final curtain falls for Serena Williams in New York. The American has achieved legendary status.
by SID
last edit:
Aug 26, 2022, 12:48 pm
It was late summer 1999 when Serena Williams delivered her first masterpiece on the big stage. With irresistible speed, explosive power and an irrepressible will, the 17-year-old super talent, who still had pearls in her hair at the time, swept over Martina Hingis in the final of the US Open. 23 years later, the era of the exceptional figure, one of the "Greatest of All Time" (GOAT), ends in New York.
Williams changed tennis. On and off the pitch. "All you have to say about Serena is that she fits into the pantheon of GOATs - Billie Jean King, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady. That's where she belongs," says John McEnroe.
Accordingly, the fans are looking forward to Williams' farewell performance emotionally. On Monday, the 40-year-old has to play against Danka Kovinic from Montenegro on the first day of the tournament. She had previously announced her resignation in Vogue , which she classifies as "progress" in a new phase of life, despite all the pain of parting. In the future, the family and their business should play the biggest role.
"There come moments in life when we take a new direction," Williams wrote. "This time is always difficult when you love something so much." How they play tennis.
Serena Williams in the Night Session?
In all likelihood, Serena will once again own the night session on Arthur Ashe, the largest center court in the world. Here she lifted the tournament winner's trophy six times. It's going to get down to business. Big emotions, deafening cheers - and possibly big tears.
The younger of the Williams Sisters won 23 Grand Slam titles, and she will probably no longer be able to take the last step on a level with the Australian Margaret Court (24). Also because Angelique Kerber twice managed the feat (Melbourne 2016 and Wimbledon 2018) to beat Williams in the final.
The icon was number one in the world for a total of 319 weeks, only Steffi Graf (377) and Martina Navratilova (332) are ahead of her in the statistics. But it's not just numbers and titles that express Williams' achievements. "What impresses me the most is her influence off the pitch and how she has inspired young women to use their influence, speak their mind and be fearless," says Chris Evert.
"Game very changed"
Values that the next generation will carry on. "The legacy she left with her tennis career can probably not be matched by any other player," says 18-year-old Cori Gauff. "There has never been anyone who has dominated women's tennis like she has," says Emma Raducanu, defending champion at the US Open, who Williams just clearly beat in Cincinnati: "She changed the game a lot in that regard."
She set the starting point in 1999, after the finale the then US President Bill Clinton called. Joe Biden could come forward this time. Even if it probably won't be enough for the title.