"Tiger Woods is one of the reasons I'm still playing" - Serena Williams after reaching 2022 US Open R3

In her retirement note, made public earlier in August, Serena Williams revealed how golfing legend Tiger Woods influenced her to make a comeback on the tour when she was confused. After her second-round win over second-ranked Anett Kontaveit on Wednesday, Williams once again credited Woods for her resurgence.

In a post-match press conference, a journalist asked the 23-time Grand Slam champion about the importance of Woods' advice. She labeled the 46-year-old golfer as the reason she was still playing tennis. She stated that Woods, who attended her second-round match, gave her clarity while she was doubtful.

"He's one of the reasons I'm here, one of the main reasons I'm still playing," Williams said. "So we talked a lot. He was really trying to get me motivated. We were like, 'Okay, we can do this together', you know? It was good because I didn't know what I wanted to do. I was just lost, so many questions. When you can rely on someone like that, I mean, my goodness, he's Tiger Woods, it was really helpful to get clarity."

When the 40-year-old tennis icon announced her retirement plans, she mentioned going to the golfer for advice since she didn't know what to do. Woods asked her to just hit the court once again, which turned out pretty well for the former World No. 1.

"I was talking to Tiger Woods, who’s a friend, and I told him I needed his advice on my tennis career. He said, “Serena, what if you just gave it two weeks? You don’t have to commit to anything. You just go out on the court every day for two weeks and give it your all and see what happens.” I said, “All right, I think I can do that.” And I didn’t do it. But a month later, I gave it a try and it felt magical to pick up a racket again."

---

"She's been playing pretty intense" - Serena Williams on Ajla Tomljanovic

Serena Williams during her US Open second-round match.

Serena Williams beat second seed Anett Kontaveit 7-6(4), 2-6, 6-2 in the second round of the 2022 US Open and advanced to the third round, where she will face 46th-ranked Ajla Tomljanovic. This will be the first-ever meeting on the WTA tour between the two players.

In a post-match press conference, the six-time US Open winner revealed that she has been watching the 29-year-old recently and is expecting a good match on Friday.

"I think it's good. She's been playing pretty intense and I've been actually watching her matches a lot. I saw her play last week or a week and a half to go. Yeah, she's been through a lot of injuries, so I kind of respect that. I think it's going to be a good match. Like I said, I have to be ready for every match," Serena Williams said.