John Isner referred to fellow American star Serena Williams as the GOAT of tennis
John Isner believes the New York Grand Slam this year will be quite a spectacle, as the tennis World prepares to bid goodbye to Serena Williams. Her retirement announcement drew reactions of support and farewell not just from the tennis world, but beyond. Many of her competitors over the years and fellow players have expressed great admiration for her over the last couple of days, with Isner the latest to do so.
“The US Open will be quite a scene this year as we say goodbye to the (GOAT emoji). What an amazing career that absolutely transcends the sport of tennis,” John Isner wrote on Twitter. Isner has not played a tour-level mixed doubles event to date, but he has played mixed doubles with Williams at the Hopman Cup. In the 2015 edition of the world event, Isner teamed up with Williams to represent Team USA and won three matches on the bounce.
Serena has spent much of the past few years off the court preparing for the moment she decided to move on, including by setting up a venture capitalist company, Serena Ventures, and investing in various organizations. However, she explained that one of her biggest reasons for retirement is her intention to further expand her family. Williams gave birth to her first child, Alexis Olympia, in 2017.
Serena also plans to grow her business. She is the founder of Serena Ventures, which raised $111 million in an inaugural funding round earlier this year. The venture capital firm focuses on startups with underrepresented founders (which make up 76% of its portfolio), including women, Latinos, African Americans, and other underrepresented groups.
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