"Sometimes I’ll fly to New York, do what I need to do, fly back and be home in time for dinner” - The extreme efforts Serena Williams goes to for her family after 'difficult' retirement

Serena Williams has opened up on life away from the court as she prioritises home and family life over everything else. This is by any means possible, even if she has to travel by plane from different locations.

The 23-time singles Grand Slam champion retired from the sport just over three years ago, bowing out at the 2022 US Open. She produced one last showcase of class, performing a seismic upset in the second round after dumping out the number two seed Anett Kontaveit before bowing out a round later in three sets to Ajla Tomljanovic. Thus, ending a magical career involving numerous titles and accolades collected in her time in the spotlight.

Retirement was inevitable by the early 2020s for Williams. She skipped the second half of the 2021 season due to injury, not coming back till the grass swing in 2022 at Eastbourne in a doubles clash. Shortly after she revealed her plan to step away from tennis, completing the North American hardcourt swing before climaxing at Flushing Meadows, where six of her Grand Slam titles have come from.

No one comes close to what the American achieved on the court. In a career that spanned 27 years, she won seven titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, three triumphs at Roland Garros, four Olympic Gold Medals, five WTA Finals successes and 319 weeks as the world number one. This does not even touch her doubles achievements, where she was also a previous number one in. Three of her Olympic gold medals came from this discipline, while she won 16 Grand Slam doubles titles.

When she made the step to retire, it was a pre-planned. Williams had also spent a lot of time away from the court in the previous months away from the tennis circuit. Despite all of this, she still found the process of getting used to life away from the court 'a little difficult.'

“No matter how prepared you are to retire, and particularly from doing something every day at such a high level, it’s hard," she told Porter. "I really prepped myself the best way I could, but it’s something that’s still a little difficult.”

Now she has hung up her racket, her main priority is being a mum and spending time with her family. She has two kids with her husband Alexis Ohanian. She was eight-weeks pregnant with her first daughter when she won the Australian Open in a hugely inspiring achievement. After taking some time off from her profession, she would play out the last years in her career. A year after retiring, she welcomed her second daughter into the world. Her daughters currently stand as Williams top priority, as she feels lucky to be in the position that she has put herself in.

“I feel fortunate that I’ve had a career and that I don’t have to do what most people do," she stated. "I’m very lucky. I put in the hard work, like we all are doing, but I did it a little bit earlier. So, I think that’s really working in my favour. And [now I can] just put my kids first.”

This goes as far as making sure she is around to cook dinner by any means possible, even if it is to fly back from extravagant locations such as New York. “I want to be around my family. I’m cooking every night that I’m home. I’m home 29 nights a month… Sometimes I’ll fly to New York, do what I need to do, fly back and be home in time for dinner.”