Serena Williams Reveals the Inner Motivation that Keeps Her Going at 39

Serena Williams has opened up on her inner motivation to succeed even into the twilight years of her career.

Fiery and feisty at 39 as she was in her twenties, Serena continues to win matches and hunt for titles while not showing any visible signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Serena Williams says it’s love for tennis that keeps her motivated in the game

Giving an insight into what drives her to be at the top of her game at an age when most players would happily settle into retirement, the American said it is the “love” of the game that keeps her going.

In a discussion, which is part of the Silk Speaker Series at the University of San Francisco, the current World Number 7 said, “I love what I do and that motivates me”.

She added that the primary motivation behind being in any job is to love and enjoy it, and this is precisely what drives her to train and win games of tennis.

The American added that she considers herself to be fortunate enough to still be able to do her “job” and it’s her run of wins on the court that keeps her “motivated” in the game.

Just one Grand Slam title shy of catching up with the legendary Margaret Court’s career haul of 24 Major trophies, which is the highest across the men’s and women’s fields, the former World Number 1 arrived at this year’s Australian Open in the hope of ending her three-year wait for a championship win.

Serena Williams failed to end her three-year Grand Slam title drought at Australian Open 2021

Serena opened her campaign with a thumping win over Laura Siegemund and followed up with a string of emphatic victories, including against the likes of Belarussian Aryna Sabalenka and two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep, on the way to reaching the semi-final.

However, even as the Serena fans were building hopes of the American going level with Court on the latter’s native soil, her campaign at Melbourne Park was brought to a crashing end by one of her avowed admirers – Naomi Osaka.

In what was only their second meeting in a Grand Slam since the 2018 US Open final, the eventual champion outgunned her in straight sets.

Read More: Coach Patrick Mouratoglou Indicates Serena Williams is Far From Retirement Following Australian Open Exit

Though Serena left the arena with a somber wave and a hand-on-heart gesture at the crowd, leading to fresh chatter around her retirement, her coach Patrick Mouratoglou sought to put such rumors to bed saying she was far from done.