Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam champion and former world number one will bid adieu to the tennis world at the US Open 2022, being the final appearance of her career in front of her home crowd where she won her first singles Grand Slam title in the year 1999. She will be looking to end her career on a high with the hope of winning the US Open for one last time as she will embark on a new journey of life amid her family and spirituality.
She hasn’t had a good start since her return at the All England Club where she lost in the first round followed by another early round exit at the Canadian Open. She lost to Belinda Bencic in straight sets in the second round. She will lock horns with 19-year-old Emma Raducanu in the first round at the Western & Southern Open who has been struggling with her form since her win at the US Open in 2021.
“She’s a really beautiful soul and is very competitive while playing” Naomi Osaka on her idol Serena Williams
Naomi Osaka, the four-time Grand Slam champion, has been struggling to be in her best form of tennis since her appearance at the French Open in 2021 as she has been dealing with injuries, loss of form and most importantly battling mental health issues. At the Canadian Open, she had to hand a walkover to Kaia Kanepi as she was struggling with a back issue which kept her in a lot of pain and forbid her to play any further.
Osaka, during an interview, upon being asked about Serena expressed her feelings about hearing about her idol Serena Williams’ retirement which left her heartbroken and emotional at the same time. She recalled the American’s warm and kind behavior towards her at all times and the kind of support she has received from the champion. She said “Honestly for me, she’s probably the nicest person I’ve ever met in my life when like everything that’s happened to me throughout my career. She always sends me really nice messages and sometimes it makes me want to cry how nice she is.”
She further added that the American, apart from being one of the greatest players of all time, is a wonderful human being and a beautiful soul. She further added, “She’s like a really beautiful soul and for me, I know when we both play we’re really competitive so I think we’re not going to think about that while we’re playing the match, but yeah honestly the nicest human ever.”
