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Prolific and record-breaking tennis player Serena Williams recently announced that she’s retiring after almost 25 years of dominating the sport.
“Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution. I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me,” she expressed in a personal essay published by Vogue on August 9.
Currently a mother of one to her four-year-old daughter Olympia, Williams said she and her husband Alexis Ohanian have been trying to conceive for the past year.
“I definitely don’t want to be pregnant again as an athlete. I need to be two feet into tennis or two feet out,” wrote the 23-time Grand Slam champion.
“These days, if I have to choose between building my tennis résumé and building my family, I choose the latter,” she added elsewhere in the piece.
While Williams’ stellar performances on the court will be missed, fans of the athlete will undoubtedly also miss her quick-witted clap backs during her pre and post-game press conferences. Never one to shy away from addressing a shady or questionable comment thrown in her direction, Williams clap backs have always been entertaining.
Scroll through some of Williams’ most memorable clap backs toward media and reporters down below.
When She Addressed Sexist Comments Made By Former Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore
Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore resigned from his position in 2016 after his comments about the Women’s Tennis Association drew backlash.
Moore expressed his feeling that the WTA rode “on the coattails of the men,” according to ESPN.
“They don’t make any decisions, and they are lucky. They are very, very lucky,” said the CEO. “If I was a lady player, I’d go down every night on my knees and thank God that Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal were born because they have carried this sport. They really have.”
When Williams was asked about Moore’s comments the following day, the tennis champion highlighted that no one could diminish the contributions of women in tennis — especially those of herself and her sister.
“Obviously I don’t think any woman should be down on their knees thanking anybody like that,” Williams said, according to MIC. “If I could tell you every day how many people say they don’t watch tennis unless they’re watching myself or my sister, I couldn’t even bring up that number.”
“I think those remarks are very much mistaken and very, very, very inaccurate,” she added. “Last year the women’s final at the U.S. Open sold out well before the men. I’m sorry, did Roger play in that final or Rafa or any man play in that final that was sold out before the men’s final? I think not.”
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