It appears that Serena Williams isn’t going to end her record-breaking career just yet after indicating that she is targeting a return this summer.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t played on the Tour since June 29th where she was forced to retire from her first round match at Wimbledon due to injury. Since then, Williams has taken a hiatus from the sport by missing both the US Open and the Australian Open due to her hamstring. There is also currently no indication that she is planning to play any events on the clay this season.
Nevertheless, it looks like Williams is hoping to play on the grass at The All England Club once again. In an Instagram story with NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers on Thursday, the American said: “We’ve been talking about my comeback and he’s been hyping me up and getting me ready for Wimbledon. Can’t wait!”
When Rogers asked Williams about a potential comeback at the US Open, she replied “Wimbledon’s before the US Open, I’ve got to play Wimbledon first! Exciting!”
The timing of Williams’ comment occurred on the same day her former coach Patrick Mouratoglou announced that he will longer be working with her after 10 years together. The Frenchman guided her to 10 major titles, three WTA Finals trophies and a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in singles during their time together. Mouratoglou confirmed that he has started working with Simona Halep.
Mouratoglou’s departure fuelled further speculation that 40-year-old Williams will be retiring from the sport in the near future. The American is keeping coy about her plans related to tennis but she has already established herself in the world of business. She is the mastermind behind Serena Ventures LLC which focuses on investing in the early stages of companies. As of March 2nd $111M has been raised for the fund, according to Williams.
“I think every tennis player thinks about the R-word [retirement] as soon as they hit five years because tennis is so intense, it’s literally 11 months out of the year,” she said during an interview with Bloomberg last month.
“But I don’t know. I’m living for the day and I always tell people, ‘I’m not planning for tomorrow, only in business, and when it comes to tennis, I’m planning just for today.’”
Williams has won 73 WTA titles and spent 319 weeks as world No.1. She has won $94.5M in prize money which is more than twice that of any other female player in the sports history.
