Serena Williams retirement heralds sunset of sport's golden era
The American, who will turn 41 next month, said that the countdown has begun for her to quit playing and devote more time to her family and business. The decision -- though not unexpected given Williams' struggles with form and injury in the past 12 months -- would have sent shivers down the spines of tennis administrators and organisers.
"She's box office," former British number one Greg Rusedski summed it up on Sky Sports. "She's carried women's tennis for the last two decades with her sister Venus as well, you've obviously had other great players around them, but she brings your non-tennis fan to the sport. "If you know absolutely nothing about tennis, you know the name Serena Williams. She's iconic and we're losing an icon of our sport and she will be truly, truly missed." But it will not just be a loss for women's tennis. She could well be the first in a series of ageing greats to call time on their playing careers in the near future.
Read AlsoSerena Williams to retire from tennis after US OpenSerena Williams said on Tuesday that she is "evolving away from tennis" and planned to retire from the sport she dominated with 23 Grand Slam titles following the US Open, which begins later this month.
Like Williams, the triumvirate of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, have also dominated tennis for the last two decades and revolutionised the sport, drawing in new and old fans and a long line of sponsors. All four of them continue to lure fans to the stands, mobile and television screens even after two decades on the tour, while their commercial pull still mesmerizes brands and advertisers. Injuries to Williams, Federer and Nadal in recent years have raised the 'retirement' question time and again and fans and
