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CNBC
6 days ago
- Sport
- CNBC
Serena Williams says winning the Australian Open while pregnant was her most important career moment: 'I don't know how I did that'
BERLIN — It was an impressive enough sporting feat when Serena Williams won a record 23rd Grand Slam singles title at the 2017 Australian Open, beating her sister Venus in the final. Soon after came a revelation: she had been pregnant at the time. "I don't know how I did that, honestly," Williams said at an event Wednesday, selecting the moment as the most important of her tennis career. It's been quite the career — after winning her first Grand Slam at the U.S. Open in 1999, Williams went on to become the only player to have achieved the "Golden Slam" — winning the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open and getting an Olympic gold medal — in both singles and doubles tennis. "I don't know what I was doing then, I was nine weeks pregnant ... I do remember not being able to run for a long time," Williams said at the SuperReturn private equity conference in Berlin. "I didn't tell anyone. I mean, Venus knew, and I still feel really bad about that, because a deep part of me feels like because we played each other in the final, I'm like, she must have known, and she must have felt some sort of deep heaviness to go even further and go all out. But she was only one of two people that knew." Early pregnancy symptoms can be intense as the body undergoes a huge transformation, with a surge in hormones often leading to fatigue, breathlessness and nausea. "I remember saying, I have to do a lot of aces, I have to do a lot of winners," Williams continued, referring to a point scored directly from a serve. "I can only play, like, four balls and I'm done." "I remember one time playing a long point against one player, and I couldn't breathe. And I'm like, How does she not see that I'm not able to breathe right now, and so I just intentionally lost the next point just to kind of try and get my energy back. But then I was like: Why am I playing this far pregnant? This is nuts." Williams, who has two daughters with investor and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, stepped back from professional tennis in 2022 to focus on her family. Sports stars such as cyclist Laura Kenny have spoken in recent years about the challenges of balancing an intense and physically demanding career with a desire to get pregnant, while tennis player Naomi Osaka has criticized public commentary that one must be sacrificed for the other. Williams now runs venture capital fund Serena Ventures, which has 40 portfolio companies. She told the packed audience of private equity professionals that the qualities that made her obsessed with winning in sports translated to a single-minded focus as an investor. "I do remember at one point, walking on the court at Wimbledon, and my partner at the time called me about a deal that we were trying to close," she recalled. "I was on Court One that day, and it's a really long walk. And I remember talking to her on the phone, and in the conversation, she's like ... How's your day going? I'm like: Well, I'm walking on the court right now. And she's just like: Are you kidding me? You have to get off the phone. I'm like, okay, it's fine. It's a long walk. I've done it before. So that's how intense, how intentional I am," Williams said. She noted that she looks for founders who are obsessive about being the best at what they do and changing the lives of people they want to impact. Her earliest investment was in the American football team Miami Dolphins in 2009, when she was the world's top-ranked female player. "We got so many bad articles about why we shouldn't be doing this. We need to just focus on tennis, and we need to not think about this," she said of the reaction from the media and sporting world at the time. "Now as an athlete, we're at the point where if you're only doing basketball or if you're only doing football, if you're only doing tennis, it's like, well, what else are you doing? So we gave people that platform to be like, it's okay. You can also be an entrepreneur, and you can do sport. You don't have to just stay in one lane, you know, and just do one thing."
Scotsman
28-05-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Who is the wealthiest tennis player 2025: Here are the 18 richest tennis stars in the world
2 . Serena Williams - $300 million In second place, with a fortune of around $300 million, is American Serena Williams. The greatest female player of all time, she won 23 major tournaments and is the only player in history to complete a career Golden Slam (winning all four majors and the Olympic gold medal) in both singles and doubles. | Getty Images
United News of India
22-05-2025
- Sport
- United News of India
Djokovic cruises into Geneva quarter-finals
Geneva, May 22 (UNI) Novak Djokovic cruised into the quarter-finals at the Geneva Open as he began his latest bid for a 100th ATP title with a straight-set victory over Marton Fucsovics. Djokovic, who turns 38 on Thursday, won 6-2 6-3 to record his first win on clay since completing the career Golden Slam at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games last summer. The Serb will return to the scene of that triumph - Roland Garros - for the French Open in pursuit of a record-breaking 25th major title from Sunday. Finalising his preparation for the second slam of the year, this opening victory in Geneva ended a three-match losing streak for Djokovic following first-round exits in Madrid and Monte Carlo since losing the Miami Open final in March. Seeded second in Switzerland, behind world number four Taylor Fritz, the sixth-ranked Djokovic will meet Italy's Matteo Arnaldi for a place in the last four. "It's great to break the ice in a way," Djokovic said on court after ending his wait for a win on clay on Wednesday. "It's a very demanding surface. We all know how tricky it is to play on clay compared to the other surfaces. You always have to expect to play another one or two shots. "I'm very glad to be able to play the best tennis when it was most needed. All the way through I was quite focused and pleased with the level of tennis, so hopefully that can continue." After he chose to part company with coach and former rival Andy Murray earlier in May following six months working together, Djokovic told media on Wednesday that he felt he "couldn't get more" out of their partnership. That decision was announced after Djokovic suffered a second consecutive first-round exit in a disappointing start to his clay court swing, losing to upcoming opponent Arnaldi in Madrid in late April. The former world number one admitted after that loss that he was facing up to a "new reality" amid his early tournament exits in the twilight of his career. This was therefore an important confidence boost at the start of his latest bid to become only the third man in the Open Era to win 100 tour-level titles - and just four days before chasing a fourth French Open. Djokovic outclassed the 134th-ranked Fucsovics, sweeping the Hungarian aside in just 77 minutes. He did so without facing a single break point, settling the first set with a double break of serve and delivering the decisive blow in the sixth game of the second. Cameron Norrie reached the quarter-finals in Geneva after opponent Tomas Machac retired with injury in the third set, but fellow Briton Jacob Fearnley lost 6-4 6-3 to Australian Alexei Popyrin. In Paris, several of Wednesday's French Open qualifying matches were suspended by rain, with Britons Dan Evans and Fran Jones among those to see their second-round matches postponed until Thursday. UNI BM
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Novak Djokovic wins first match on clay since Paris Olympics to reach Geneva Open quarterfinals
Novak Djokovic earned his first clay-court victory of the 2025 season, defeating Hungary's Márton Fucsovics 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals of the Geneva Open. It was Djokovic's first win on clay since he secured gold at the Paris Olympics in August to complete the career singles Golden Slam: winning all four grand slam singles events and the Olympic singles gold medal. Advertisement The Serbian star was dominant throughout – never facing a break point – and his performance was a stark improvement on recent first-round exits in Monte-Carlo and Madrid. 'My first win this season on clay, obviously it's great to break the ice in a way,' Djokovic said in his on-court interview. 'It's a very demanding surface. 'We all know how tricky it is to play on clay, compared to the other surfaces you always have to expect an extra one or two shots, balls coming back. 'Here there is a bit more altitude so it helps in you have a good serve, and today, I think that was my strongest shot. I had a very high percentage of first serves, a lot of free points on the first serve when I needed to get myself out of trouble. 'It makes life on court a bit easier. Very glad to be able to play the best tennis when it was most needed. All the way through 'til the last moment I was quite focused and pleased with my level of tennis. Hopefully, that can continue tomorrow.' Advertisement The 24-time grand slam singles champion, who turned 38 on Thursday, is still bidding to win his 100th ATP title. Djokovic, who parted ways with coach Andy Murray last week, came into Geneva on a three-match losing streak after defeat in the final of the Miami Open, and those first-round losses in Monte-Carlo and Madrid. The No. 2 seed in Geneva, Djokovic will face Italy's Matteo Arnaldi – the man who beat him in Madrid – on Thursday for a place in the semifinals. The victory, but more so his vastly improved performance, will likely be of great relief to Djokovic ahead of the French Open, which begins on Sunday, as the Serb aims to win a coveted 25th grand slam singles title. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at
