"Emotions can only carry you so far, I don't see a Cinderella happy ending where she wins the tournament" - Martina Navratilova believes Serena Williams should brace for disappointment at 2022 US Open
Martina Navratilova believes that Serena Williams will not have a fairy-tale ending to her career at the US Open, which gets underway on August 29.
The 40-year-old Williams announced a few weeks ago that she was going to retire from the sport she has dominated for more than two decades after the New York Grand Slam.
She hasn't had a great time on the court since returning from a year-long break. She faced opening-round defeats at Wimbledon (Harmony Tan) and the Cincinnati Open (Emma Raducanu). At the Canadian Open, she managed to beat Nuria Parrizas-Diaz before falling to Belinda Bencic in the second round.
Speaking to Reuters, former World No. 1 Navratilova stated that she doesn't see a happy ending to Williams' career.
"Emotions can only carry you so far, I don't see a Cinderella happy ending where she [Serena Williams] wins the tournament. The way she has looked it doesn't look like she is going to make a miraculous comeback and win the tournament," Navratilova said.
"And with the stress of knowing this is likely your last tournament it doesn't help. But if anyone can overcome it would be Serena," she added.
The 18-time Grand Slam champion drew comparisons from her own retirement, stating that she had a tough time at every tournament she participated in after announcing her retirement plans.
"It's hard. When I retired in '93 I told the press it was my last year which was a mistake because every single tournament was a freaking tear-jerker. Serena did it her way, which was announcing in a very glamorous way on Vogue magazine, but then she is not accepting the losses, she is not accepting what comes with it which is saying goodbye," she said.
Williams is a six-time US Open champion, having won the title in 1999, 2002, 2008, 2012, 2013 and 2014. She has also finished as the runner-up at Flushing Meadows four times, in 2001, 2011, 2018 and 2019.
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Serena Williams joins forces with Rennae Stubbs for 2022 US Open
Serena Williams has taken on Rennae Stubbs as her coach for the upcoming US Open, which is set to be the final Grand Slam of her illustrious career.
During her practice session at the Arthur Ashe Stadium alongside World No. 3 Maria Sakarri, Stubbs - a four-time Grand Slam doubles champion - was spotted offering advice to the 23-time Major winner. They were also spotted having a serious conversation after the session ended.
Omg two of my favorites partnering for the #USOpen ! @rennaestubbs is coaching the GOAT @serenawilliams. Let’s gooooooooo!! https://t.co/s6CgeIbG1y
After parting ways with her long-time coach Patrick Mouratoglou earlier this year, Williams has been working with Eric Hechtman, her sister Venus Williams' coach since 2019.
This year, she will make her last attempt to equal Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slams. Williams has been eyeing that record for five years now.
Her last Grand Slam title came at the 2017 Australian Open, where she beat sister Venus Williams in straight sets. Since then, she has reached four Major finals and lost them all.
In 2018, she reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals, losing to Angelique Kerber and Naomi Osaka respectively. A year later, she reached the final at those two events once again, but was beaten to the crown by Simona Halep and Bianca Andreescu respectively.