Is Serena Williams set to retire? What did tennis ace say in Vogue, how old is she, net worth, Grand Slams won

Serena Williams, one of the world’s greatest ever tennis players, has announced she will be “evolving away” from tennis after the upcoming US Open.

Writing for the fashion magazine Vogue, Williams has said she is “moving towards other things that are important to me” adding she is not a fan of the term, “retirement.”

Williams, who has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles in her time, played at Wimbledon 2022 for the first time in over a year after overcoming a lengthy injury.

She then recently won her first match since her return at the National Bank Open in Toronto earlier this week.

The 40-year-old beat world number 57 in the world Nuria Parrizas Diaz in straight sets and remained coy when asked about retirement after her triumph.

However, the recent publication of the Vogue interview has made it clear where one of the best ever athletes in the world stands on retirement.

What has Serena Williams said?

Speaking after her first win in over a year, Williams was asked about her motivation to keep going to which she replied: “I guess there’s just a light at the end of the tunnel.

“I don’t know, I’m getting closer to the light. Lately that’s been it for me. I can’t wait to get to that light.”

When asked what this light represented, Williams said: “Freedom. I love playing though, so it’s amazing.”

However, her recent essay with Vogue Magazine, which was published earlier today, indicated that Williams is ready to say “farewell to tennis on her own terms.”

The 23-Grand Slam winner wrote: “I never wanted to choose between tennis and a family. 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.

“Don’t get me wrong: I love being a woman, and I loved every second of being pregnant with Olympia.

“And I almost did the impossible: A lot of people don’t realise that I was two months pregnant when I won the Australian Open in 2017. But I’m turning 41 this month, and something’s got to give.”

Williams continued on by saying: “I have never liked the word retirement, it doesn’t feel like a modern word to me.

“Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution. I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me.”

“I don’t want it to be over, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s next.”

Serena Williams’ record on court

Williams is one off Margaret Court’s 24 Grand Slam titles record and has been the most prolific female tennis player in recent years.

She has a career record of 855 wins to 153 losses and won her first Grand Slam title in 2002 at the French Open before winning her first Wimbledon title later that year.

Williams has won the Australian Open on seven occasions; the French Open three times; Wimbledon seven times and the US Open six times.

The 40-year-old from Compton also has 14 Grand Slam Ladies’ doubles titles to her name and two mixed doubles titles.

Williams enjoyed a total of 319 weeks at number one, including a joint-record 186 consecutive weeks in the top sport finishing the year as the world’s number one on five occasions.

What is Serena Williams’ net worth?

In 2016, Williams was the world’s highest paid female athlete, earning almost $29million and repeated the feat the next year when she was the only woman on Forbes’ list of 100 highest-paid athletes.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Williams is currently estimated to have a net worth of $250million dollars (£206m).

When is the US Open?

Emma Raducanu will begin her defence of her US Open title, while the world prepares for potentially Williams’ last ever tournament, on 29 August 2022 and it will conclude on 11 September 2022 at the Flushing Meadow Ground.