Tennis superstar, Serena Williams, is once again leading the way in historical victories. With 23 career Grand Slam titles — the most for any player in the Open Era, male or female — Williams is also now tied with Roger Federer with 363 grand slam singles match wins. Williams added to her grand slam wins by overcoming two set points to beat Irina-Camelia Begu 7-6 (6), 6-2 under the lights in the first round Monday in the first scheduled night session in French Open history. “It’s definitely a little different, but overall, ironically enough night sessions are not my favorite matches, but I do have a good record at it so clearly something about it gets me hype. I have to say it was pretty cool to be able to play the first night session ever here at Roland Garros,” Williams says during a press conference, following her win. “That was something I thoroughly enjoyed.” Williams had lost two of her three clay-court matches ahead of Roland Garros and struggled at times in her first-round clash with Irina-Camelia Begu.
A remarkable milestone for two of the greats!@serenawilliams and @rogerfederer are now tied in Grand Slam singles match wins. pic.twitter.com/uUUz3bxjaP
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) May 31, 2021
The 39-year old has won the French Open three times, most recently in 2015, and is chasing a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title. She improved to 77-1 in first-round Slam matches. The loss came in Paris in 2012. Williams is one step closer to equaling Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles. Amidst the exciting win for Williams is the sudden departure of rising star Naomi Osaka. The 23-year-old tennis star decided to leave the French Open after a dispute on speaking to the press. “I’ve often felt that people have no regard for athletes’ mental health and this rings very true whenever I see a press conference or partake in one,” the four-time Grand Slam champion wrote in a letter to social media. “We’re often sat there and asked questions that we’ve been asked multiple times before or asked questions that bring doubt into our minds and I’m just not going to subject myself to people that doubt me.”
Williams is accustomed to the backlash, especially connected to the French Open’s rules and regulations. The tennis tournament banned Williams from wearing a black catsuit that was designed to stop blood clots after giving birth back in 2018. “I’ve had a lot of problems with my blood clots, God I don’t know how many I’ve had in the past 12 months,” she says in an interview in May of 2018. “I’ve been wearing pants, in general, a lot when I play so I can keep the blood circulation going.”The French Tennis Federation’s president reportedly said attire like Williams’ “Wakanda-inspired outfit” will no longer be accepted.
Williams, who has been through many difficult news conferences during her career, spoke out during a post-game press conference in support of Osaka. “I feel for Naomi, and I wish I could give her a hug because I’ve been in those situations,” Williams says. “You have to let her handle it the way she wants to in the best way she can.”
