WATCH: Serena Williams delivers an emotionally charged speech after exiting the US Open

Serena Williams delivered an emotionally charged speech in which she thanked her parents and sister Venus in her Grand Slam singles swansong.

Sep 3, 2022 - 08:59
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WATCH: Serena Williams delivers an emotionally charged speech after exiting the US Open

Williams, who turns 41 later this month, plans to “evolve” away from tennis following a US Open campaign that ended in the third round with a 7-5, 6-7 (4/7) 6-1 loss to Australia’s in-form star Ajla Tomljanovic.

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Williams had disposed of second seed, and world number 2, Anett Kontaveit in the second round. That made it eight consecutive victories against players ranked inside the world’s top two for Serena. Talk about BMT, even at the age of 40.

Here’s her emotional speech after the defeat to Tomljanovic in which she makes special mention of her parents and older sister Venus, a seven-time Grand Slam winner in her own right.

Serena says goodbye to tennis at the same event where she won her first of 23 Grand Slam titles, 23 years ago. Video via @usopen / Twitter.

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There will be no 24th singles Grand Slam title for one of the most iconic names in modern sports. But there were 23 major titles for the legendary Williams to savour, and that’s a number which makes her the most decorated player of the Open Era.

Video montage of Serena Williams celebrating all 23 of her Grand Slam singles titles. Video via @wimbledon / Twitter.

“I have never liked the word retirement,” Williams told Vogue magazine.

“It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me.”

Serena Williams, as she has done throughout her storied career, walks away from the sport in her own way.

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