"She's going to go down as one of the great athletes, not just in tennis, but in sports history" - Pam Shriver on Serena Williams' retirement announcement

Pam Shriver, a former tennis pro, reacted to Serena Williams' announcement of her retirement by stating that the American will go down as one of the greatest athletes in sports history.

In a Vogue article, published on Tuesday, tennis legend Serena Williams announced her impending retirement. She declared that she would retire after the US Open, which will take place in late August and run until September. If she triumphs at Flushing Meadows, Williams will tie Margaret Court's 24 Grand Slam singles title record.

In light of this, during a recent interview, ESPN tennis analyst Pam Shriver stated that Williams' decision to retire was not particularly surprising to her and that it was a very "conscious" decision.

"Not really a surprise, I feel like the year of Wimbledon 2021 which injured her hamstring, the loss to Harmony Tan a little over a month ago, I feel like this was a very conscious decision to make this push towards the US Open," Shriver said.

"I think in the year off, she realised she wasn't in it long term but I think for her, the decision to end her career at the place is overwhelmingly looks like it's the US Open from everything she said and that's where she won her first of 23 majors in 1999. So I think it is coming full circle, and a lot of times athletes like to have that feeling of coming full circle and coming out on their own terms," she added.

As per Shriver, Williams will go down as one of the greatest athletes in sports history, not just in tennis.

"She's going to go down as one of the great athletes, not just in tennis, but in sports history," Shriver said, adding, "When you think about her longevity, winning Majors as a teenager in the 90s and still competing in 2022 and her record in the Olympics, in major double finals with Venus and all, I could go on and on on the impact she has had."

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"She has impacted tennis on the court, off the court" - Pam Shriver on Serena Williams

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Pam Shriver continued by discussing Serena Williams' influence on the tennis world. She said that the 23-time Grand Slam champion transcends generations and has developed into a fantastic "spokesperson" and "philanthropist."

"Well, she has impacted tennis on the court, off the court, " Shriver said, adding, "She's taken tennis off the sports pages into pop culture. She bridges, really, people of all generations and a diversity of backgrounds. She's become a great spokesperson, a philanthropist. She's matured before our eyes."

After being eliminated by Harmony Tan in the first round of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, Serena Williams began her North American swing at the 2022 Canadian Open.

Williams got off to a solid start in Montreal after defeating Nuria Parrizas-Diaz of Spain in her opening match, 6-3, 6-4. Additionally, it was her first victory on the WTA tour since the 2021 French Open.

Williams will square off against Belinda Bencic in the second round of the Canadian Open on Wednesday.