Maria Sharapova Recalls How She Asked Serena Williams to Introduce Her Into Tennis Hall of Fame

Maria Sharapova trailed by a great margin in her head-to-head record against Serena Williams.

Maria Sharapova Recalls How She Asked Serena Williams to Introduce Her Into Tennis Hall of Fame

Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams (Image via X/International Tennis Hall of Fame)

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To the very surprise of the tennis world, it was Serena Williams who inducted her former arch-rival Maria Sharapova into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Williams gave a stirring speech that was not without some jokes, and it also made Sharapova emotional.

Two days later, on Monday (August 25), Sharapova was presented with the Hall of Fame ring at Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open. Following the ceremony, the 2006 US Open champion sat inside the ESPN commentator box, and she revisited the moment when she asked Williams to introduce her to the Hall of Fame.

It was the first person I thought of. I sent her a message… I said ‘Do you have a minute?’ I got a response. We spoke for an hour, and it happened. I just can’t believe we kept it a secret for that long.

Sharapova and Williams have faced each other on the WTA tour 22 times, out of which only twice the former emerged victorious. Those two wins came in the final of the 2004 Wimbledon and in the fourth round of the 2018 Roland Garros. In their final encounter, in the first round of the 2019 US Open, the result ended in Williams’ favor.

Next year, Sharapova announced her retirement. Williams followed suit at the 2022 US Open. As time progressed, their rivalry took a backseat, and they became friends.

I think we really let our guard down. There was always a deep, mutual respect for what we did. It was like a silent known of the effort, the sacrifice, of everything we have to go through to be champions. There’s only one trophy at the end. The big trophy. There’s a little trophy, but we wanted the big trophy. We stood between those trophies. We were competitive. So it’s nice to build that friendship following all those matches.

Maria Sharapova added

Williams will be eligible for the Hall of Fame induction only in 2027. Apart from Sharapova, Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan– the most successful men’s doubles players- were also inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Maria Sharapova watches Venus Williams’ US Open match

During her speech in the Hall of Fame ceremony, Serena Williams said Maria Sharapova reminded her of her sister Venus Williams and also said the Russian could be her sister. Although Serena and Sharapova have hung up their rackets, Venus is still competing.

Venus Williams
Venus Williams (Image via X/Jimmie48 Photography)

Sharapova, in fact, sat inside Arthur Ashe Stadium to watch Venus’ first-round match against Karolina Muchova. The 45-year-old took the second set off Muchova but couldn’t wrap up the match in her favor, losing with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 scoreline.

It was her first appearance in the home Grand Slam tournament after the 2023 season (she lost in the first round). Before the US Open, Venus played two home tournaments.

She accepted the wild card for the Citi Open, her first event since the 2024 Miami Open. After beating Peyton Stearns, Venus fell in the second round. Next, she received the wild card for the Cincinnati Masters, and there, too, she couldn’t progress beyond the first round.

What’s uncertain about Venus is this: she doesn’t know what her next tournament will be, whether she will be traveling a lot to play tournaments outside of the United States. This also means one thing, that she perhaps played her final match at the US Open.

Williams last lifted a title at the 2016 Taiwan Open by beating Misaki Doi. Since then, she has played four singles finals, the last of which she lost to Caroline Wozniacki in the 2017 WTA Finals. She last claimed a Grand Slam title at the 2008 Wimbledon by beating Serena.

Also read: Petra Kvitova Reflects on the Proudest Moments of her Illustrious Career After her Retirement at the US Open