Why Serena Williams Says the Chances of Returning to Tennis Are “Very High”

More than two months after announcing her retirement, Serena Williams hinted that she could return to the courts soon.

By Tamantha Gunn Oct 25, 2022 6:46 PMTags
Watch: Serena Williams Announces Retirement From Tennis

Serena Williams may need to dust off her racquet.

The tennis star recently teased a return to the sport after she previously announced she would be stepping away.

"I am not retired," Williams said at a conference in San Francisco Oct. 24 while promoting her investment company, Serena Ventures. "The chances [of a return] are very high. You can come to my house, I have a court."

Williams' latest comments come more than two months after she penned an essay announcing that she would be leaving tennis after the U.S. Open in September.

"I have never liked the word retirement," she wrote for Vogue. "It doesn't feel like a modern word to me. I've been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. 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." 

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Serena Williams Through the Years

Williams—who shares daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., 5, with husband Alexis Ohanian—noted that while she wasn't excited about the career move, she was looking forward to expanding her family.

"I definitely don't want to be pregnant again as an athlete," the four-time Olympic gold medalist wrote. "I need to be two feet into tennis or two feet out."

Though the 41-year-old has not officially announced her return, she has hinted at a comeback on more than one occasion. 

Lev Radin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Last month, she noted Tom Brady "started an amazing trend" when he unretired from the NFL in March. And 11 days later, according to Variety, she reportedly told Bradley Cooper, "I feel like if I want to come back, I definitely can still come back." 

Will Williams return to tennis? Only time will tell.

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