"There's still some fire which I take as a good sign"- Lewis Jon Wertheim on Serena Williams' chances at the US Open 2022
Lewis Jon Wertheim, a well-known sports writer and journalist, has remarked that Serena Williams still has the fire to win inside of her, but it's unlikely that she will continue to compete after the US Open.
Serena Williams made a comeback at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships after a year-long hiatus. However, her run was cut short in the opening round of the tournament at the hands of Harmony Tan, 7-5, 1-6, 7-6(10-7).
This was followed by two early exits at the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Open at the hands of Belinda Bencic and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu, respectively.
ꜱᴏʟɪᴅ performance 👊
In her @CincyTennis debut @EmmaRaducanu moves past Serena Williams, 6-4, 6-0! https://t.co/SZ9OjhbyWT
The legendary tennis player recently revealed in a first-person essay for Vogue magazine that she is planning to retire after the US Open.
In light of this, in an interview with the Tennis Channel, Lewis Jon Wertheim, who is the executive editor of Sports Illustrated, shared his thoughts on Serena Williams' chances at the US Open. According to Wertheim, the 23-time Grand Slam winner is still adjusting to the enormity of the tour and is unsure of how to proceed.
"She is still grappling with the dimensions of the tour," Wertheim said, adding, "She didn't wanna leave 6-0 in her first event back. She is not entirely sure what to make of this. If she were doing it for a victory lap she would have taken a moment to address the crowd. There was none of that."
The journalist went on to say that while Williams still has some fire in her, it isn't sufficient for her to play past the US Open.
"So there's still some fire there which I take as a good sign but it's unfortunately looking increasingly unlikely. She left the door open a little but it's really hard seeing her play past the US Open," Wertheim said.
"It's tough to say where she will be in New York"- Chanda Rubin on Serena Williams
In the same interview, former tennis pro Chanda Rubin also discussed the American's chances at the 2022 US Open. She asserted that she was uncertain about Williams' chances of prevailing at Flushing Meadows this year, but the 40-year-old could play a solid match if she gets more practice.
"It didn't seem like she was all the way comfortable so it's tough to say where she will be in New York," Rubin said, adding, "But, hopefully she will feel a little bit better, have sone practice under her belt physically would get a little bit closer to a 100% if she is off. Hopefully, she would be able to play a good match and I think that's at the end any great champion wants to be able to do."
Serena Williams will once again swing her racquet at this year's Major at Flushing Meadows, which runs from August 29 to September 11. The American will be eying to equal Margaret Court's record of winning 24 Grand Slam singles titles.