The legendary 27-year tennis career of Serena Williams is nearing its end. 

In an essay penned by Williams and published in Vogue on Tuesday, the tennis superstar indicates that this month’s U.S. Open, which begins August 29, could be her last tournament.

A must read. https://t.co/NSWDGHzsXK

— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) August 9, 2022

Williams revealed that she does not want to use the word “retirement,” instead calling it an “evolution” away from tennis.

“I’ve been reluctant to admit to myself or anyone else that I have to move on from playing tennis,” Williams wrote. “Alexis [Ohanian], my husband, and I have hardly talked about it; it’s like a taboo topic. I can’t even have this conversation with my mom and dad. It’s like it’s not real until you say it out loud.

“It comes up, I get an uncomfortable lump in my throat, and I start to cry. The only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist! One thing I’m not going to do is sugarcoat this. I know that a lot of people are excited about and look forward to retiring, and I really wish I felt that way.”

Williams has been preparing for her post-tennis life for several years, including setting up a venture capital firm, Serena Ventures, and investing in various organizations. However, she cited a desire to grow her family as a significant motivation for stepping away.

“I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family. I don’t think it’s fair,” Williams wrote. “If I were a guy, I wouldn’t be writing this because I’d be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the physical labor of expanding our family.”

Williams, 40, began her professional career in 1995 as a 14-year-old and has since become one of the greatest to ever play the sport, with 73 career singles titles, four Olympic gold medals, and 319 weeks at No.1 in the world rankings.

She also has won 14 major doubles titles alongside her older sister Venus Williams. (Venus, 42, has not made any announcements about her future.)

Serena Williams has won 23 career grand slam singles titles, just one win short of the all-time record of 24 set by Margaret Court. She can tie the record with a win at the U.S. Open.

Throughout her historic career, Williams earned nearly $95 million in prize money and much more in endorsements.

Williams became synonymous with bouncing back from difficult circumstances throughout her career. 

In 2011, Williams suffered a hematoma and a pulmonary embolism. One year later, she began arguably the most dominant run in tennis history, going 126-11 in solo matches and 273-33 in sets over 2012 and 2013. 

In 2013 alone, she went 78-5 in matches and 160-15 in sets, winning 11 titles, including two majors. 

Perhaps her most remarkable comeback happened in her return to tennis after her pregnancy.

In September 2017, she had a cesarean-section delivery after suffering a pulmonary embolism during labor. She then suffered another pulmonary embolism after giving birth to her daughter, which left her bed-ridden for six weeks.

She returned to tennis in February 2018 and went 72-28 in singles play over the next four years, making the 2018 and 2019 Wimbledon and U.S. Open finals. 

Williams acknowledged that it is painful to step away from tennis.

“There is no happiness in this topic for me. I know it’s not the usual thing to say, but I feel a great deal of pain,” Williams wrote. “It’s the hardest thing that I could ever imagine. I hate it. I hate that I have to be at this crossroads. I keep saying to myself, I wish it could be easy for me, but it’s not. I’m torn: I don’t want it to be over, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s next.”