“Don’t lose any sleep about it” – Steffi Graf commends Serena Williams, but doesn’t equate herself in the ‘GOAT’ equation anymore
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Steffi Graf is in the tennis hall of fame with her 22-time Grand Slam titles. She was the only player to score an astounding feat as such, and was the only player to do so in the Open Era. Her record was broken by the American champ, Serena Williams.
Graf was recently interviewed on the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit of 2020. She reflected on her own achievements, but didn’t rue the loss of the ‘GOAT’ title. Further, she acknowledged Williams’ close-to-record-making 23 Grand Slam wins. Graf stated that she was “just happy” to be alongside Williams. However, she elaborated that her “life is so far away from tennis at this point.”
“In terms of greatest of all, I am so content and happy with the career that I had that it’s not important honestly for me. I don’t lose any sleep about something like that,” she added.
Graf’s take on the new talent around the WTA Tour
Further, the tennis champ commended Williams for working hard to achieve longevity in her career. “Watching her through such a long career – it’s amazing. I felt I was ready at 29-30 to retire. But seeing her mental toughness and how she is so determined and pushing out there and so eager – that is mesmerising to me,” Graf said.
The German also responded very positively to the up-and coming talent on the WTA Tour. She specified the recently crowned Grand Slam champions; Naomi Osaka, Bianca Andreescu and Iga Swiatek for taking the world by storm. In addition, according to her, this emergence has “energised women’s tennis.”
“Serena Williams has been a flag bearer for long. But you have Osaka, Andreescu and all these different players that have come through. And are shining really brightly right now,” she concluded.
Also Read: The Biggest Tennis Controversies of 2020
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Chhavi Jindal
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