Australian Open 2020 news - Serena juggling 'insane' workload of tennis, business and motherhood
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Updated 22/01/2020 at 17:03 GMT
Serena Williams may be chasing her record-equalling 24th Grand Slam at the Australian Open but tennis is not getting in the way of her family or business commitments.
Serena Williams of the US reacts after a point against Slovenia's Tamara Zidansek during their women's singles match on day three of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne
Image credit: Getty Images
The 38-year-old has won her first two matches in Melbourne with a combined loss of just eight games but despite some potentially tricky ties ahead against the likes of Caroline Wozniacki and Naomi Osaka, the last two champions here, she remains committed to ventures off court.
That includes both the raising of her daughter, Olympia, born in September 2017 and the running of her ventures in the fashion industry, which she opened up on during an unusually candid on-court interview.
“It’s not easy. Some days are definitely harder than others, I’m running a full-time company and this morning I’m sending emails about our March designs," she said after her second-round win over Tamara Zidansek.
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It's insane, but it's fun. It’s a lot of work. Being a mom is incredibly special to me, it’s the best thing I've done. I’m a real hands-on mom, I try to do everything with her.
"We've been together every day of her life, which is a little bit much, I need at some point to spend 24 hours away but I haven't been able to manage it yet.
"So I'm a little obsessed, but I love it, I love every aspect of it. It’s so fun."
The scoreline against Zidansek of 6-2, 6-3 may have looked convincing but Williams struggled with her forehand at times in the clash and, as the Slovenian grew into the match, she was audibly geeing herself up between every point in the later stages of the second set.
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Highlights: Williams toils but passes stern Zidansek test
And she was aware that the 22-year-old had engaged her in a battle and that victory would not be forthcoming.
“It was a good match for me, she was a real good fighter. She didn’t just let me win!” Williams joked after the match.
Everyone plays me like that so it’s nothing new. I was up 40-0 up on both of her serves so I was a little frustrated. I made so many errors in a row and just had to battle through my own internal problems.
“I knew I had to play better. I couldn’t keep making unforced errors like that. I knew I had to step up or it was going to be a really long evening for me.
"I know I have a great forehand, I know I have a great backhand, I just had to rely on it a little bit more and not question myself, so it kind of helped out."
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