Serena Williams says ‘allowing myself to relax… is harder than I ever imagined’
Serena Williams says ‘letting myself rest… is harder than I ever imagined’ as she spends her first season in retirement instead of planning for the Australian Open.
Normally at this time of year, Serena Williams would be preparing for the Australian Open in January and it seems she is finding it difficult to fill the extra time on her hands.
After an emotional farewell to tennis at the US Open in August and September, the 41-year-old has adjusted to life away from the court.
But with the next title on the horizon in the tennis calendar and extra time off during the holidays, she took to Twitter to admit that life in retirement isn’t easy.
“At the moment I am allowing myself to be tired”, she wrote. ‘I allow myself to rest. Allowing myself to be. It’s harder than I ever imagined. I’ve never allowed myself to do any of this before…’
Serena Williams has admitted she has struggled to relax as she adjusts to life after tennis
The 41-year-old took to Twitter on Wednesday to admit her struggles with the extra holiday
Earlier on Wednesday, she posted a photo with her daughter Olimpia and husband Alexis, showing how they had thrown their five-year-old a surprise party.
“Sometimes we surprise Olympus with parties,” Williams wrote on Instagram. “We don’t need a reason or a special occasion to make every day as special and memorable as we can. Her mother also fasts…’
Williams announced her retirement in a Vogue article in August and said it was partly because she wanted another child.
“I never liked the word pension. It doesn’t seem like a modern word to me,” she said. “I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, towards other things that are important to me.
“I never wanted to choose between tennis and family. I don’t think it’s fair. If I were a boy, I wouldn’t be writing this because I’d be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the manual labor to expand our family. But I’m turning 41 this month and something has to give.’
Despite retiring after the US Open, Williams has said she may return to the court one day, but her latest tweet about allowing herself to rest seems to also end any suggestion she could play at the Australian Open next month.
Williams, 41, retired from tennis in September after playing in the US Open
Williams said earlier Wednesday that she had thrown a surprise party for daughter Olympia
Speaking at a tech event in San Francisco in October, the 23-time Major Williams winner said: “I’m not retired.
The chances (of returning) are very high. You can come to my house and see that I have a court.
‘I haven’t really thought about it yet. But I went on the court the other day and I realized for the first time in my life that I wasn’t playing for a competition and it felt very strange.
“It was like the first day of the rest of my life and I’m enjoying it so far. But I’m still trying to find that balance.
