Serena Williams has been an extremely strong advocate of gender equality both on and off the court. Elaborating on the same while hanging her racquet up for good, Williams highlighted the unique sacrifices that women have to make in their careers and life in general.
In a recent interaction with Vogue, Williams declared that she was going to retire shortly after the U.S. Open, which kicks off in late August. A win at the event could help Serena tie Margaret Court’s record of 24 grand slam titles. Williams asserted that her desire to spend more time with her family had prompted her decision to walk away from the sport for good.
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“Believe me, I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and family. I don’t think it’s fair. 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. Maybe I’d be more of a Tom Brady if I had that opportunity.”
While addressing concerns about her retirement, she admitted that she did not want to be in a position to choose between her family and the sport she loves. She further asserted that the announcement would not have been the same if she had been a man.
When did Serena Williams retire from Tennis?
Serena Williams said she was “evolving away from tennis” in August 2022 and, while she did not confirm the US Open as her farewell event, she was given lavish tributes before each match in New York and waved an emotional goodbye after losing in the third round to Ajla Tomljanovic.
“I am not retired,” Williams said at a conference in San Francisco while promoting her investment company, Serena Ventures. “The chances (of a return) are very high. You can come to my house, I have a court.”
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The 23-time Grand Slam champion, who took the tennis world by storm as a teenager and is considered by many the greatest of all time, said not preparing for a tournament after the US Open did not feel natural to her.
Williams has been careful not to use the word retirement, instead, announcing she was “evolving” away from tennis. “I have never liked the word retirement. It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me,” Williams wrote to Vogue in August 2022.
When Serena Williams accused an Umpire of being sexist during the US Open
The US Open final between the tennis legend Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, a rising star in her own right, could have been a celebration of talent and determination, regardless of the outcome.
Instead, the match which was held on 9th September 2018 will always be remembered for what Williams charged were “sexist” code violations against her by the chair umpire, who penalized her for verbal abuse after she called him a “thief.”
Naomi Osaka went on to win the match in two sets, 6-2, 6-4, but she was also upset and apologized to the crowd and Williams’s fans.
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Chris Evert, a former top tennis player, tweeted that Ramos should have warned Williams about the verbal abuse violation before penalizing her. During the match, Andy Roddick, who retired from the sport in 2012, wrote on Twitter, “Worst refereeing I’ve ever seen…the worst !!!.” James Blake, a retired tennis star, tweeted that he had said worse things on the court and did not get penalized.
Billie Jean King, a tennis legend and a pioneer for women in the sport, congratulated Osaka in a tweet before thanking Williams in a separate one for calling out a double standard between men and women in the sport.
(2/2) When a woman is emotional, she’s “hysterical” and she’s penalized for it. When a man does the same, he’s “outspoken” & and there are no repercussions. Thank you, @serenawilliams, for calling out this double standard. More voices are needed to do the same.
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) September 9, 2018
On Twitter, some people pointed out that the treatment of Williams as a woman, particularly a woman of color, was especially egregious.
I really have to sit w this #USOpenFinal for a minute. Bc the way that this country convolutes and manipulates and dishonors black women and expects everything every day all the time from black women but only in a way that is approved by non-black women is just tew much today.
— Rebecca Carroll (@rebel19) September 8, 2018
Other reactions on social media largely focused on the umpire, Carlos Ramos, for penalizing Williams for behavior that critics said would ordinarily result in just a warning for other players.
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