By Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, September 27, 2022

Don't close the final chapter on Serena Williams' career just yet.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion has left the comeback door open.

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Appearing with sister Venus Williams in an interview with actor Bradley Cooper as part of A&E Networks and The History Channel's History Talks series in Washington, DC, Serena vowed she can still stage a comeback.

“I feel like if I want to come back, I definitely can still come back," Serena said in comments published by Vanity Fair.



The four-time Olympic gold-medal champion said ultimately she felt her farewell after bowing to Ajla Tomljanovic in the US Open third round was the right time.

“I just needed to stop,” Serena said. “I always said I wanted to stop when I’m playing really good tennis and winning and beating good players. For me, it’s really about things I want to do spiritually and spending time with my daughter and family.” 

Serena said motherhood has been one of the most fulfilling roles of her life and she feels it's time to try different things after devoting a lifetime to tennis.

“As a super hands-on mom, I can’t tell you how hard it was," Serena said. "I lost so many matches after I had Olympia because it was so hard to be on the court.

"I feel like I’ve given so much of my life to tennis, my entire life, that it’s time to do something different for me and also work on other things."

Photo credit: Getty