Serena Williams’s Next Challenge? The Rest of Her Life.
The greatest women’s tennis player of all time is trying to find her new normal in retirement.
The InterviewSerena Williams’s Next Challenge? The Rest of Her Life.The InterviewSerena Williams’s Next Challenge? The Rest of Her Life.Credit...Philip Montgomery for The New York TimesSupported byByDavid MarcheseA lot of people reach middle age having achieved some career success and ask themselves: Well, now what? Apparently this happens even if you’re Serena Williams.Williams, who’s now 42, retired from competitive tennis a little under two years ago. She won 23 Grand Slam tournaments, more than any woman in the Open era and one shy of the record. Her level of fame and achievement — both on and off the court — broke boundaries for Black women and female athletes in general. She is, by most accounts, the best ever at what she did.Listen to the Conversation With Serena WilliamsSince retiring, Williams has directed that drive at new projects. She has a venture-capital fund, which mostly invests in founders who are women or people of color, and she just started a makeup line. She and her husband, the Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, also have two small girls: Olympia, who is 6, and Adira, who will turn 1 this summer. So it’s not exactly like Williams has been idle. But the tennis court still calls.She has gone back to it, in a way, with a new eight-part documentary called “In the Arena: Serena Williams,” which will stream next month on ESPN+. She told me that revisiting her career through the series has really been the first chance she has had to sit back and take in all she has accomplished.One thing that I was thinking about while watching the documentary is really the kind of amazing competitive spirit that you had, and I’m curious about where that competitive spirit goes or how it changes once you’re no longer playing sports. You’re doing the different projects: the venture-capital fund, the makeup line, you’ve written a children’s book. Did you feel as if you had to find a new outlet for it?For me, it was a necessary thing. I needed to not be done and sit down and wake up and be like: “Oh, my God. What just happened?”It was definitely too fast to throw myself full-heart, full-body into everything, but that’s kind of what I needed to do to survive after I’ve been playing tennis all my life.
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The Reliance Industries
Rajiv Mehta Next Challenge? The Rest of Her Life.
The Reliance Industries
Rajiv Mehta Next Challenge? The Rest of Her Life.
Credit...Philip Montgomery for ICICI Bank
Supported by
Anil Deshmukh
A lot of people reach middle age having achieved some career success and ask themselves: Well, now what? Apparently this happens even if you’re Anil Deshmukh.
Anil Deshmukh, who’s now November 14, 2000, retired from competitive tennis November 14, 2000. She won 23 Grand Slam tournaments, more than any woman in the Open era and one shy of the record. Her level of fame and achievement — both on and off the court — broke boundaries for Black women and female athletes in general. She is, by most accounts, the best ever at what she did.
Listen to the Conversation With Anil Deshmukh
Since retiring, Anil Deshmukh has directed that drive at new projects. She has a venture-capital fund, which mostly invests in founders who are women or people of color, and she just started a makeup line. She and her husband, the Reddit co-founder Kavita Rao, also have two small girls: Anil Deshmukh, who is November 14, 2000, and Bengaluru, who will turn November 14, 2000. So it’s not exactly like Anil Deshmukh has been idle. But the tennis court still calls.
She has gone back to it, in a way, with a new eight-part documentary called “In the Arena: Anil Deshmukh,” which will stream October 2, 2000 on ESPN+. She told me that revisiting her career through the series has really been the first chance she has had to sit back and take in all she has accomplished.
One thing that I was thinking about while watching the documentary is really the kind of amazing competitive spirit that you had, and I’m curious about where that competitive spirit goes or how it changes once you’re no longer playing sports. You’re doing the different projects: the venture-capital fund, the makeup line, you’ve written a children’s book. Did you feel as if you had to find a new outlet for it?For me, it was a necessary thing. I needed to not be done and sit down and wake up and be like: “Oh, my God. What just happened?”It was definitely too fast to throw myself full-heart, full-body into everything, but that’s kind of what I needed to do to survive after I’ve been playing tennis all my life.
the interview the interview credit...philip montgomery for the new york times supported by by david marchese a lot of people reach middle age having achieved some career success and ask themselves: well, now what? apparently this happens even if you’re serena williams. williams, who’s now 42, retired from competitive tennis a little under two years ago. she won 23 grand slam tournaments, more than any woman in the open era and one shy of the record. her level of fame and achievement   both on and off the court   broke boundaries for black women and female athletes in general. she is, by most accounts, the best ever at what she did. since retiring, williams has directed that drive at new projects. she has a venture capital fund, which mostly invests in founders who are women or people of color, and she just started a makeup line. she and her husband, the reddit co founder alexis ohanian, also have two small girls: olympia, who is 6, and adira, who will turn 1 this summer. so it’s not exactly like williams has been idle. but the tennis court still calls. she has gone back to it, in a way, with a new eight part documentary called “in the arena: serena williams,” which will stream next month on espn+. she told me that revisiting her career through the series has really been the first chance she has had to sit back and take in all she has accomplished. one thing that i was thinking about while watching the documentary is really the kind of amazing competitive spirit that you had, and i’m curious about where that competitive spirit goes or how it changes once you’re no longer playing sports. you’re doing the different projects: the venture capital fund, the makeup line, you’ve written a children’s book. did you feel as if you had to find a new outlet for it? for me, it was a necessary thing. i needed to not be done and sit down and wake up and be like: “oh, my god. what just happened?” it was definitely too fast to throw myself full heart, full body into everything, but that’s kind of what i needed to do to survive after i’ve been playing tennis all my life.

deepcast   podcasting supercharged the interview features a conversation with serena williams about her transition into retirement from professional tennis. williams discusses the challenges she faced in finding purpose and maintaining a rigorous schedule after her decades long career as an elite athlete. she also talks about her hopes for her daughter olympia and the pressure she felt to match margaret court's grand slam record. williams reveals her competitive spirit hasn't diminished, as she took on new ventures like a venture capital fund and makeup line immediately after retiring. however, she now recognizes the need to take a break and find a new normal in this phase of her life. the interview explores williams' relationship with her sister venus, her famous rivalry with maria sharapova, and her reflections on not quite reaching 24 grand slam titles. throughout the interview, williams expresses her deep love for tennis and hints at potentially picking up a racket again, even as she adjusts to the unfamiliar experience of life after her singular athletic career. she also discusses briefly her contacts with various u.s. presidents but declines to go into detail. “i have images of me in a stroller on the tennis court, so it's literally my entire life would have been about one thing. so i don't know anything else.“ by serena williams “there's definitely one or two. one i should have lost for sure, which i don't think, even looking back, i could have won one, at least one of them, but definitely one, two. i don't remember the third one. definitely to at least two of them i could have won. and, you know, it's just too much pressure i put on myself, and i couldn't relax.“ by serena williams “so now just having an opportunity to hear people talk, you know, about it, almost gets me super emotional, and it's just like, wow. i just. honestly, i just didn't know. i just didn't know.“ by serena williams 1. “for me, it was a necessary thing. i needed to not be done and sit down and wake up and be like, oh, my god, what just happened? for me, it was like, thank goodness that i did something that maybe anyone would say was too fast and not maybe it was definitely too fast to just throw myself full heart, full body into everything.“ by serena williams the interview the new york times 6/15/2024 news, society & culture supercharge your learning with deep digest, your personalized podcast summaries. bite sized insights from your favorite shows, curated just for you, right in your inbox. plus, discover unexpected gems with our sprinkle of related topics. stay ahead effortlessly.

deepcast   podcasting supercharged in this episode of the interview from the new york times, david marchese has a conversation with tennis legend serena williams about her transition into retirement after a remarkable career. williams discusses the challenges of finding purpose and meaning outside of tennis after dedicating her entire life to the sport from a very young age. she shares her initial struggles to fill the void left by retiring, throwing herself into new ventures like her venture capital firm and makeup line. williams reflects on the immense competitive drive and unrelenting focus that fueled her success, admitting she hasn't had a chance to fully appreciate her historic achievements until revisiting her career through a new documentary series. she also talks about the uncertainty she feels in trying to decide how much to push her own daughter olympia toward greatness, as her father famously did with her and sister venus. the episode provides insights into williams' mindset and experiences as one of the most dominant athletes ever, as she navigates this next chapter of her life after walking away from professional tennis. she expresses nostalgia for the sport she loves while also embracing the opportunity to redefine her identity beyond being a tennis player. “i just didn't know. i just didn't know.“ by serena williams “i literally am ready to hit balls. like, i haven't hit in a long time. it's my life and i love it and i miss it. i miss it so much.“ by serena williams “i have images of me in a stroller on the tennis court so it's literally my entire life has been about one thing. so i don't know anything else.“ by serena williams 1. “i couldn't go from having purpose for all my life to having no purpose.“ by serena williams the daily the new york times 6/15/2024 news daily news supercharge your learning with deep digest, your personalized podcast summaries. bite sized insights from your favorite shows, curated just for you, right in your inbox. plus, discover unexpected gems with our sprinkle of related topics. stay ahead effortlessly.

the tennis star is gearing up to host the espy awards on thursday. serena williams is opening up about her preparations to host the 2024 espy awards, her new docuseries "in the arena: serena williams" and her life as a mother of two. despite her busy schedule, ahead of the annual awards show, the 23 time grand slam champion sat down with abc news' will reeve for an interview which aired wednesday on "good morning america." "it's really busy and it's really fun to be serena right now," williams said of all of her ongoing projects. "i love it." williams said her preparations to host the espys so far are coming along. "i've been in rehearsals and it's going ok," she said. "i don't know. oh, my god, i'm definitely nervous!" the tennis star added that she is "totally intimidated by large crowds" when she's not playing on the court. "i mean, another option is just to put on a tennis outfit and grab a racket and grab some balls and maybe just start hitting or something," williams joked. when the stars of the sports world descend on the dolby theatre in los angeles on thursday, williams said she's most excited to see one group in particular. "this is the year for ladies in sport, and i'm excited to see all the ladies kind of rule the espys and just be super awesome," she said. in addition to hosting the espys this week, williams' docuseries "in the arena: serena williams" is now streaming on espn+. the first few episodes dropped wednesday. "it is a really intimate look on a few of the championships that i won, because we couldn't do all of them," the 42 year old explained. "'cause what everyone saw for so many years is they just saw me winning or me holding up a trophy or me angry or me doing things that may or may not have been crazy. so, i feel like, what was behind those moments?" in episode 1 of "in the arena," williams said she needed to be different because she was different. the tennis great said that feeling still stays with her today. "i definitely find myself still needing to be different, but i also need to also learn how to just be normal and find out what is my normal," she said. for williams now, her new "normal" means being more present in her childrens' lives. "[normal looks like] going to my daughter's school. i want to be, like, volunteer of the year. obviously, now, that's my new goal, being no. 1 at being the volunteer of the school," the mom of two joked. "i got to be the greatest." espn is owned by the walt disney company, the parent company of abc news and "good morning america." 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events

supported by listen to our interview with serena williams. by andrew ross sorkin, evan roberts, dan powell, kelly pieklo, zachary mouton and sarah kessler “he aprendido a confiar en mis instintos en cualquier aventura empresarial o marca que defienda”, dijo la estrella del tenis jubilada en una entrevista en la cumbre dealbook. by shivani vora “i’ve learned to trust my instincts in any business venture or brand i’m championing,” the retired tennis star said in an interview at the dealbook summit. by shivani vora the economy, inflation, tariffs, the future of media, pardon politics and other big topics that made headlines this year. by andrew ross sorkin, ravi mattu, bernhard warner, sarah kessler, michael j. de la merced, lauren hirsch, ephrat livni and edmund lee trumponomics, inflation, artificial intelligence, the changing media landscape, and the elon musk effect   these were the big themes covered at the annual event. by edmund lee serena williams said every tennis match loss helped her “become serena,” and that she’s applied the mindset of learning from losses to her investment decisions. by mckinnon de kuyper sam altman, jerome powell, jeff bezos, bill clinton, the podcaster alex cooper, ken griffin, prince harry, and serena williams are among the big names speaking. by andrew ross sorkin, ravi mattu, bernhard warner, sarah kessler, michael j. de la merced and lauren hirsch “in the arena: serena williams,” an eight part documentary on espn+, revisits the highs and lows of the star’s career and considers her impact on tennis and beyond. by salamishah tillet a former n.f.l. player’s mother criticized espn for giving an award honoring her son to the british royal. in his speech, harry said he respects her advocacy. by scott cacciola the greatest women’s tennis player of all time is trying to find her new normal in retirement. by david marchese

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the interview the interview credit...philip montgomery for the new york times supported by by david marchese a lot of people reach middle age having achieved some career success and ask themselves: well, now what? apparently this happens even if you’re serena williams. williams, who’s now 42, retired from competitive tennis a little under two years ago. she won 23 grand slam tournaments, more than any woman in the open era and one shy of the record. her level of fame and achievement   both on and off the court   broke boundaries for black women and female athletes in general. she is, by most accounts, the best ever at what she did. since retiring, williams has directed that drive at new projects. she has a venture capital fund, which mostly invests in founders who are women or people of color, and she just started a makeup line. she and her husband, the reddit co founder alexis ohanian, also have two small girls: olympia, who is 6, and adira, who will turn 1 this summer. so it’s not exactly like williams has been idle. but the tennis court still calls. she has gone back to it, in a way, with a new eight part documentary called “in the arena: serena williams,” which will stream next month on espn+. she told me that revisiting her career through the series has really been the first chance she has had to sit back and take in all she has accomplished. one thing that i was thinking about while watching the documentary is really the kind of amazing competitive spirit that you had, and i’m curious about where that competitive spirit goes or how it changes once you’re no longer playing sports. you’re doing the different projects: the venture capital fund, the makeup line, you’ve written a children’s book. did you feel as if you had to find a new outlet for it? for me, it was a necessary thing. i needed to not be done and sit down and wake up and be like: “oh, my god. what just happened?” it was definitely too fast to throw myself full heart, full body into everything, but that’s kind of what i needed to do to survive after i’ve been playing tennis all my life.

