More than a page, it’s an entire chapter in the history of American and world tennis that should turn in a few days. Whether she loses in the first round, on the night of Monday to Tuesday against Montenegrin Danka Kovinic, or whether she lifts a 24th Grand Slam trophy, Serena Williams, 40, will be entitled to a more than honorary farewell at Flushing Meadows.
You have to go back to 1999 to witness the beginnings of the Williams phenomenon. The greatest player in history then won her very first Major tournament, at home in New York. 23 years later, it is in these same spans that the American public should attend the last blows of the racket of their icon. Saturday, already, the locals piled up to even see their star in training.
In the image of her career, disproportionately striking, the price of tickets for the night session of the queen of places exploded, even reaching nearly 100,000 dollars for a place on a resale platform. Coming from the public as much as from the organizers, the tribute paid to Serena Williams should be grandiose.
“I expect an absolutely iconic celebration at the US Open. I think it will be unmissable, ”warns former French champion Marion Bartoli. “I keep the memory of an absolutely extraordinary competitor, a winner at heart, a girl who completely dominated and revolutionized tennis for years”, continues the one who met her for 13 years on the WTA circuit.
Beyond all the excitement that will mark her last dance at Flushing Meadows, the former world number 1 will have a tournament to play. And like a legend, she does not intend to leave Big Apple in the first round, which she will play on the Arthur-Ashe court, of course.
Doubles with her sister Venus
“Serena is like Roger (Federer), she never comes to lose in the first round, assures John McEnroe to Eurosport. Since her return, she has played four games, she has lost three. It’s not what she wants. But with no disrespect to Toronto or Cincinnati, it was New York that she wanted to be ready for. »
In the city of the Yankees, Knicks and other Jets, Serena Williams won 9 prestigious titles: 6 in singles, 2 in doubles and one in mixed doubles. And this year, like a new symbol that sticks to the dramaturgy made in the USA, the native of Michigan will compete in the doubles tournament with her sister Venus. A second opportunity to postpone retirement and why not afford a final victory in the way it all started, with the family.
