“It has no relevance in her world,” Andre Agassi said Steffi Graf was unbothered when Serena Williams surpassed her Grand Slam titles tally
Serena Williams surpassed Steffi Graf's tally of 22 Major titles at Australian Open 2017.
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Serena Williams
Steffi Graf and Serena Williams are arguably two of the greatest women to ever play step onto the tennis court. The duo share 45 Grand Slam titles between them, with Serena Williams finishing her career with 23 Major titles. Steffi Graf holds the record for most weeks spent as the world number one, across both the men’s and women’s section.
Eight-time Grand Slam champion and husband of Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi spoke about Serena Williams overtaking her wife’s tally of 22 Major titles in an earlier interview. Prior to winning her 23rd Grand Slam title at the Australian Open 2017, there were a lot of comparisons drawn between Serena Williams and Steffi Graf.
Andre Agassi revealed that the entire situation had no relevance in Steffi Graf’s life, since she had been aloof from the sport for well over a decade. However, she was obligated to show some importance because of the respect that Serena Williams deserved for her incredible achievements.
Related: Billie Jean King’s new initiative not aimed at pitting Novak Djokovic versus Steffi Graf
“Steffi doesn’t want people to feel she doesn’t care about tennis” : Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi stated that Steffi Graf put some importance on the Grand Slam race just to show people who thought that she did not care about the sport. “It has no relevance in her world. The hardest part of Serena chasing down those numbers was respecting the game. Steffi doesn’t want people to feel she doesn’t care about tennis. She cares but she’s so disconnected. Every time she was asked she felt obligated to put importance on it for the sake of tennis and an incredible champion in Serena,” Agassi had said.
Serena Williams claimed her 23rd Grand Slam title at the 2017 Australian Open, when she was pregnant with her daughter, Olympia. Unfortunately, that turned out to be the American’s last ever Major title, before announcing her retirement at the 2022 US Open.
Serena Williams came close to leveling Margaret Court’s record of 24 Major titles on several occasions, but failed to clear the final hurdle. Despite facing setbacks and disappointing results in the last couple of years, nobody can take away the incredible contribution Serena Williams has made to women’s tennis.
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Nirmit Mehta
(2425 Articles Published)