Jill Craybas, a former WTA pro, has put forward the argument that Serena Williams’ could be the greatest of all time (GOAT) in both men’s and women’s tennis.
Inher pomp, Williams was a force to be reckoned with on the court and has done so much for the sport away from just being a great champion.
She had an incredible career, winning 39 Grand Slams (23 in singles, 14 in doubles, and two in mixed doubles). She also won four Olympic gold medals and topped the World Tennis Association rankings for 319 weeks.
“She [Serena Williams] is definitely at the top of the list and I think Chris [Bowers] makes a good point of maybe incorporating the doubles into the category a little bit more,” Craybas said on the ATP Tennis Radio Podcast.
“With the men in particular, if you talk about the top 3: Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, they didn’t play doubles that often. So, I think if they did, there would’ve been a lot more numbers in their category as well. But, if we are talking about numbers, yes, I mean, Serena definitely is one of the best, the highest in that category along with Margaret Court obviously, having 24-Grand Slam titles,” she continued.
Craybas believes that the change in the sport sparked by Serena Williams and her sister Venus casts her achievements in a totally different light.
“But you not only talk about the numbers, but the substance, the celebrity. I mean, I think Serena is one of those that transcended all of that, right? Went beyond sport,” Craybas said.
“Even if you didn’t watch tennis, people knew who she was. People know who she is, no matter you are a sports fan or not and that’s a big deal. So, for me, that’s what makes her one of the best in the world.”
Serena Williams has conducted interviews in French and is fluent in the language.
The American speaks other languages besides French and English. She is fluent in five languages altogether, including Mandarin, German, and Italian.
Speaking about her fluency in French, Williams mentioned that one of her motivations for learning the language was to be able to communicate in it after winning the French Open. The language’s widespread use in African nations was another factor in it.
“One of the reasons I learned French was I wanted to win the French Open, and I wanted to speak French when I won,” Williams told The Fader.
“The second was because in most African countries, the main language outside of their local language is French or English. So I figured: I know English, maybe I can learn French.”
