Venus Williams has hinted at her future in professional tennis. The former World No. 1 and seven-time Major singles champion continues to play despite suffering numerous chastening losses in recent seasons, particularly in singles. Her latest comments about her future came after a shocking first-round loss to 23-year-old compatriot Mary Stoiana, currently ranked outside the WTA top 100.
On Monday, November 2, Stoiana delivered a dominant performance to defeat Williams 6-2, 6-3. After the result, which marked Williams’ 17th successive singles loss, the American tennis legend told AFP that she has yet to make concrete plans for her future in the sport. Currently ranked World No. 597 in singles, the 46-year-old said:
“I haven’t made any plans for next year, also this year I didn’t make plans, just took it one step at a time.”
She went on to mention her sister, Serena Williams, suggesting she could ‘copy’ the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion’s future plans. Williams added:
“I’m going to ask what Serena Williams’ doing, probably copy her. We’ve always motivated each other. I’m really fully focused on every one week at a time, and whatever happens will happen, and I don’t have pressure to decide or anything.”
Venus Williams’ most recent singles win came in Washington last year
To find a singles win for Venus Williams, you have to go back to last year’s WTA 500 tournament in Washington. On that occasion, the former No. 1 delivered a stunning performance, beating compatriot Peyton Stearns 6-3, 6-4. The result made Williams the oldest match-winner on the WTA Tour since Martina Navratilova’s first-round win at the 2004 Wimbledon Championships.
After her victory over Stearns, though, Williams has lost back-to-back matches against Magdalena Frech, Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, Karolina Muchova, Magda Linette, Tatjana Maria, Olga Danilovic, Ajla Tomljanovic, Diane Parry, Francesca Jones, Kaitlin Quevedo, Emiliana Arango, Kamilla Rakhimova, Anastasia Potapova, Irina-Camelia Begu, Sofia Kenin, Lilli Tagger, and most recently, Stoiana.
Williams’ dismal run in singles has repeatedly prompted tennis fans to urge tournaments to stop giving the former World No. 1 main-draw wildcards. According to these fans, events would be better off giving the wildcards to younger players looking for opportunities to shine at WTA Tour-level tournaments. Several fans have also demanded Williams’ retirement, opining that she simply isn’t good enough anymore to compete on the WTA Tour.
The 46-year-old American hasn’t fared much better in doubles either. Even though she has picked up victories in the category, her overall win-loss record in women’s doubles so far this year stands at 5-11 ahead of her first-round match partnering Xu Yifan in Hong Kong.
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Esta notícia foi originalmente publicada em: Fonte original