Serena Williams, who has won the last two U.S. Open Women’s Championships, spoke to the media in advance of the start of the tournament on Monday. Once again, Williams enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed and the favorite to win. A victory would give her 18 Grand Slam titles for her career.
Williams discussed her opponent, 18-year-old Taylor Townsend, in her opening round match on Tuesday.
“She’s such a great player. Extremely young. I have been able to see her play a little bit,” Williams said. “She does everything really, really well. We’re really good friends. We always talk and always text each other. It’s going to be a really tough match for me.”
On Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day, Williams was asked what the legend would think of two African-American women battling in the first round of the tournament.
“I think he would say it’s a great opportunity to see, you know, a veteran American player play the future of American tennis,” she said. “He was such an amazing guy. I had an opportunity to meet him. So I think he would be really proud and honored to see so many young African-American players, especially in America, doing so well and playing so hard and just being role models for even the next generation.”
Williams has always been known for her style, both on and off the court, and she was asked to describe it.
“I would say my style in general is super trendy, but I always love to add a classic silhouette with it,” she said. “I always love to keep those classic forms, but keep it in style with, you know, the young things, the trendy things, but making it just wearable for everyday wear and wearable for years to come.”
The tennis fashionista has a fashion presentation coming soon.
“I’m having a fashion show for Serena’s Signature Statement,” Williams said. “I’m launching Aneras. They are two totally different fashion lines. This show we are doing for fashion week, New York. It has always been a dream of mine to have a fashion show in New York Fashion Week. We are doing the collection that sold on (Home Shopping Network) for Serena’s Signature Statement. We have cast the models, and it’s been a really great experience. I’m really excited and nervous at the same time to see the reactions, and hopefully we’ll get a full house.”
Williams also discussed her razor-sharp focus before and during tournaments.
“I just really try to focus on the match,” she said. “I just really dedicate those few hours to just, you know, strictly tennis. When the match is over, I kind of do relax a little bit. But obviously in most tournaments and Grand Slams, if you win a match, there is always a match the next day, so you can’t let your guard down too much. It’s a lot of mental work I think for two weeks to just always kind of stay super focused.”
The 17-time Grand Slam champion also gave a little insight into what drives her success.
“I have always been, you know, really intense and really incredibly passionate about what I do, whether I’m in the practice court or if I’m at a match,” Williams said.
As Williams enters the tournament on Monday, she is once again the favorite. With her legendary skills, combined with her intensity and passion, we may just see Williams win her third-straight U.S. Open title, and her 18th Grand Slam title.
