'She pushed me so much' - Justine Henin 'grateful' for Serena Williams rivalry after American announces retirement

Justine Henin says facing Serena Williams was the “biggest challenge” of her career and that their matches pushed her to be a “better player”. Henin and Williams were involved in a number of high-profile clashes over the years, including the French Open and Wimbledon semi-finals in 2003 and the Australian Open final in 2010. They also met in three of four Grand Slam quarter-finals in 2007, all of which Henin won.

Ad Henin finished her career with a 6-8 losing record against Williams, who has retired from tennis following her third-round US Open exit last week. US Open‘Rafa is going to be the guy’ — McEnroe backs Nadal to top world rankings once more3 HOURS AGO The rivalry between Henin and Williams was one of the most captivating in women’s tennis this century. “Of course she has been a big part of my career, because she pushed me so much to become a better player,” said former world No.

1 Henin on Eurosport. “She was my biggest challenge, like many other players, and I feel really grateful and happy that I could be a part of it with Serena, with Venus [Williams], with all these champions. But Serena of course, mentally challenged me a lot during my career, and she made me win big matches a couple of times.

How Williams transformed tennis and transcends sport Court says current era 'so much easier' for Williams “Mentally it was hard for me to find the conviction that I could play against her, that I could compete against her. She was impressive all the time and I had to work so hard to be part of it so I'm grateful. I can say thank you, and yes, [Serena announcing her retirement] was also a special moment for me.” Williams bowed out of tennis with a battling three-set defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic.