Venus Williams is gearing for a return to tennis in 2023. As the seven-time Grand Slam champion enjoys the twilight phase of her career, many wondered if she had silently left the game altogether following just four singles matches in 2022.
While the days of going deep at Grand Slams appear to be behind her, the 42-year-old’s passion for the game still burns bright and she provided a positive perspective regarding her future in a recent video on her YouTube channel. “A lot of people have been asking me, ‘are you gonna play again?’ I love tennis and I would like to play again and I will let you know exactly when,” she said.
The former world number one went on to discuss how she has been training since her disappointing first round doubles loss at the US Open with sister Serena Williams earlier this year. “I’ve been honestly hitting the court a lot and let me tell you when I hit the court… right after the doubles match that we played at the US Open,” she added.
“I immediately booked the court the next day and I went to every single practice in New York. I hit indoors and I’ve been hitting ever since and that’s been a lot of fun. I’ve actually been working on a lot of things. Mainly my forehand, my serve, and I’ve been working on slicing.
However, despite saying goodbye to the sport back in September, Serena, who has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, suggested last month that her chances of her returning to the game are ‘very high’. “I am not retired,” Williams said at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco. “The chances [of me returning] are very high.
“You can come to my house and [see] I have a court. I didn’t even think about the whole retirement. I still haven’t really thought about it. But I did go on the court the other day and [realised] for the first time in my life that I’m not playing for a competition and that felt very weird.
“It was like the first day of the rest of my life, and so far, I am enjoying it. But I’m still trying to find that balance.” Williams hinted she may put off a move akin to fellow sporting great Tom Brady, who reversed his decision to retire after just 40 days.
“I mean, you never know. I’ve just been saying that Tom Brady started a really cool trend…” the seven-time Wimbledon champion said during an appearance on Good Morning America. Late last month the Williams sisters were on the court together after a picture was posted of them training alongside former world number 29 Urszula Radwanska – the younger sibling of Agnieszka Radwańska – who Serena beat in the 2012 Wimbledon final.
