Former 22-time Grand Slam doubles champion Pam Shriver says Serena Williams is going down as one of the greatest athletes in sports history.
On Tuesday, Williams announced the US Open would be the final tournament of her career.
Williams is widely considered as one of the greatest players in tennis history, having a total of 39 Grand Slam titles – 23 in singles, 14 in women’s doubles and two in mixed doubles.
Shriver, who is an American tennis legend and icon, says Williams is more than just an all-time great in tennis.
“In the end, she’s going to go down as one of the great athletes, not just in tennis, but in sports history,” Shriver said on ESPN’s Get Up.
ESPN tennis analyst @PHShriver reacts to Serena Williams announcing her tennis career is winding down.
“In the end, she’s going to go down as one of the great athletes, not just in tennis, but in sports history.”
(via @GetUpESPN) pic.twitter.com/bcDreULgvE
— ESPN (@espn) August 9, 2022
Williams announces her decision to retire
“I’ve been reluctant to admit to myself or anyone else that I have to move on from playing tennis,” Williams told Vogue. “Alexis [Ohanian], my husband, and I have hardly talked about it; it’s like a taboo topic. I can’t even have this conversation with my mom and dad. It’s like it’s not real until you say it out loud. It comes up, I get an uncomfortable lump in my throat, and I start to cry. The only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist! One thing I’m not going to do is sugarcoat this. I know that a lot of people are excited about and look forward to retiring, and I really wish I felt that way.”
After being out for a year, Williams returned to action at Wimbledon, where she suffered a first round defeat.
Williams is now playing at this week’s WTA 1000 event in Toronto and she is also scheduled to play in Cincinnati next week.
After that, her career comes to an end at the US Open.
“Unfortunately I wasn’t ready to win Wimbledon this year,” Williams said in the essay. “And I don’t know if I will be ready to win New York. But I’m going to try. And the lead-up tournaments will be fun.”