Ode to Serena
I loved Venus Williams. Her grace. Her humility. Her kindness.
I hated Serena Williams. Her persona. Her brashness. Mostly, though, her winning against Venus.
I long moved past those feelings. As Venus moved to a different phase in her career and was no longer competing for titles, I finally came to appreciate Serena in all her greatness. Now, at the age of 38, Serena finished competing for her 7th US Open title on Thursday, losing to Victoria Azarenka in the semifinals in a hard-fought match.
She’s still chasing records, but her place among the all-time sporting greats is unquestioned.
She has the resilience and records of Tom Brady.
Win or lose, the fact that she’s even at this stage is a testament to her greatness. Like Tom Brady, she is competing with athletes of a completely different generation. They both have their shares of amazing wins and painful losses, but they have the records in their respective sports due to their consistent presence at their sport’s biggest stages.
She has the athleticism of LeBron James
(and lived up to the hype like him too).
Like LeBron, she is a physical freak of nature. Both combine a size, strength, and speed that seem straight out of a lab. In both cases, their physical gifts have led people to not appreciate just how good they are at the game itself.
And both have lived up to unbelievable hype and expectations. From being anointed as the next great at a young age, both have somehow managed to do so while being model citizens off the court.
She has thrived as an outsider like Bill Russell.
Like Russell, she wasn’t the first black member of her league but was definitely at the vanguard and faced stiff resistance. Her very existence as a black woman led to her fighting unfounded criticism of her braids, her muscles, and more through much of her career. She wasn’t afraid to take a stand, boycotting a tournament where her family was the victim of racist comments from the crowd.
She has dominated like Tiger Woods.
Like the “Tiger Slam”, Serena completed the “Serena Slam”. Both are unbelievable frontrunners and have an intimidating aura that affects peers before the competition even begins.
She has made historic comebacks to the game like Michael Jordan
(with the same burning fire).
Like Jordan, she has taken time away from the game in her prime and returned to the summit again. She’s in the midst of yet another comeback after having a child a couple years ago, with 4 Grand Slam finals on her resume with a young daughter in tow.
For both Serena and MJ, you never questioned their effort – if there was a competition, you knew they would both be bringing it.
Long story short: she’s incredible. In tennis, we’re at a point where the greatest of all time are all in their mid to late thirties, from Djokovic and Nadal to Federer and Serena. They all continue to defy Father Time, but there is no doubt we are closer to the end of this golden age than the beginning. So let’s make sure to savor this greatness while we can.