Serena Williams admits to ongoing thoughts of a tennis comeback following retirement - 'I feel torn'

Updated 13/02/2023 at 16:31 GMT

The 'will she won't she' saga has taken another step as Serena Williams says there is "no excuse" why she isn't playing professional tennis, while also revealing she is "more at peace" with her retirement decision. Williams, 41, waved goodbye to the game at last year's US Open, but has gone public on a number of occasions to profess her mixed feelings about doing so.

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Serena Williams says a tennis comeback still crosses her mind, but also declared she is "more at peace" than when she first decided to retire from the game.

The sporting legend, holder of 23 Grand Slams, departed the game at last year's US Open, following a strong showing at Flushing Meadows until defeat at the third round stage to Ajla Tomljanovic.

Those showings seemed to confirm to Williams that she could still compete at elite level, but despite admitting on a number of occasions since that day that she has thought about a return, it has yet to materialise, with motherhood and her career taking the front seat.

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And now, she has - once more - elaborated on the difficult equations going on in her mind.

"I for sure feel more at peace now," Williams told E!

"It's interesting. I think I feel torn because I'm still able to play at a very, very, very high level.

"With that being said, I always wanted to leave the game playing at a very high level.

"I also wanted to walk away when I'm healthy and have a quality of life.

"But I'm inch by inch leaning away, inch by inch embracing it.

"I was playing earlier when I first retired because it was hard to do it cold turkey.

"But lately, I haven't played so much. And I miss it. I'm like, 'Oh my goodness. I gotta get out there'. But it's hard for me to get out there.

"I did play the other day, and it's just like, 'There's no way I shouldn't be playing professional tennis'. Like, there's literally no excuse.

Serena Williams of the United States walks off the court after having played her final career match against Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia in the third round on Day 5 of the US Open Tennis Championships at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center

Image credit: Getty Images

"But I mean, I guess there is an excuse, right? It's hard because when I'm playing I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, I'm pretty good at this. I can continue to do this,' which not a lot of people can say."

Williams did however share how much she is relishing the "balance" and "fun" that her new life is giving her.

"I've been playing tennis for literally my entire life," she said. "My entire being and knowing is just what I've done.

"So now, I'm inch by inch finding my way. Obviously, I love other businesses that I've done. But just inch by inch leaning into that and leaning into my family and leaning into just having fun.

"I think it's so important to do all those and still create that balance."

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