Serena Williams got very emotional after losing to Naomi Osaka in the semifinals of the Australian Open. The 39-year-old tennis legend was looking to win her 24th grand slam title but lost to Osaka in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in the annual event on Thursday in Melbourne, Australia. After the match, Williams took questions from reporters and then got emotional, cutting the press conference short.
“Last couple questions in the room, please,” the moderator of the press conference said. One reporter asked Williams about the “unforced errors through the match” and if it was “just one of those bad days at the office.” Serena began to tear up and had a quick response.
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After her semifinal loss to Naomi Osaka, Serena Williams leaves the pressroom in tears.#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/g95Fva006O
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) February 18, 2021
“I don’t know,” Williams said through tears. “I’m done.” She then got up from her seat and left the press conference. There’s speculation that Williams could be retiring soon based on the way she left the court after the loss to Osaka. Williams received a standing ovation from the crowd and placed her hand over her heart.
“The Aussie crowd is so amazing, so it was nice to see,” Williams stated earlier in the press conference. She was then asked about saying goodbye for good. Williams replied, “I don’t know. If I ever say farewell, I wouldn’t tell anyone. Williams is only one grand slam singles title away from tying Margaret Court’s record of 24. Her last grand slam championship came at the 2017 Australian Open.
It looked like Williams was going to come out on top as she was playing her best tennis since returning from maternity leave in 2018. Some of her notable wins during the Australian Open were against Aryna Sabalenka and Simona Halep, the No. 2 tennis player in the world.
However, Williams had to take down Osaka, who is considered the best female tennis player right now. Osaka defeated Williams in the 2018 US Open Final and came out on top in 2019 Australian Open and 2020 US Open. If she wins this year’s Australian Open, Osaka would have the third-most grand slam titles among active female players. The two that are ahead of her are Williams with 23 and Serena’s sister Venus Williams with seven.
