‘Won’t Get Burned Out’ – Serena Williams’ Invincible Winning Streak Once Made Chris Evert Retract Her Words From Her Open Letter

Currently, Serena Williams is going through a slump in her career, as she has not won a Grand Slam title in over five years. Interestingly, she faced a similar sort of situation before the 2007 season, as she faced a Grand Slam drought.

At that time, American tennis legend Chris Evert criticized Serena for not focusing on tennis, but rather focusing on various off court commitments. However, Serena made a strong comeback in the 2007 season and she later had a strong season in the next year as well. After seeing that, Evert took back her words as she praised Serena for her achievements.

Chris Evert once took back her words regarding Serena Williams’ on-court commitment

In 2008, Serena Williams won her 9th Grand Slam title at the US Open after defeating Jelena Jankovic in the final. Incidentally, Chris Evert was there during the final. Before the final began, Evert said, “It’s opened my eyes not to be judgmental and to each his own. Whatever makes you happy. By having other interests, maybe you won’t get burned out so quickly.”

Read More: ‘Didn’t Feel Like Part of It at All’ – Chris Evert Once Detailed the Insignificance of Olympics Over Grand Slams

Indeed, that was an honest admission by the 18-time Grand Slam champion, as she retracted her words. Notably, Evert wrote an open letter to Serena about not giving a hundred percent on the court, pointing out Serena’s various off-court involvements. “I don’t see how acting and designing clothes can compare with the pride of being the best tennis player in the world,” Evert wrote in her open letter.

In 2007, Serena won the Australian Open while being ranked 81 in the WTA rankings. In that tournament, she showed tremendous grit and determination to win the title, after suffering from a series of injuries in the previous season.

Serena’s comeback in 2007

In the 2007 Australian Open, Serena beat the world no.1, Maria Sharapova, in straight sets to win her first Grand Slam title after 2 years. Although she did not win any more titles in 2007, she showed good consistency.

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In the next season, Serena won the US Open, as mentioned earlier. Apart from that, she also won the Wimbledon doubles title and the Olympic Gold medal with her sister, Venus Williams.

Currently, Serena is arguably the greatest tennis player in the modern era with 23 Grand Slam singles titles. Additionally, she is going for her 24th Grand Slam title at the age of 40, trying to match Margaret Court’s record.

Can Serena match Margaret Court’s record before her retirement from the tour? Let us know in the comments.