// The Seasons
From Compton to Centre Court
Six acts. Twenty-seven years on tour. Twenty-three Grand Slams. One plan written on a notebook by a father in Compton.
1981 – 1999 · The Foundation
The Compton Blueprint
Richard Williams wrote a 78-page plan to raise two tennis champions before either daughter was born.
Born in Saginaw, Michigan, raised in Compton, California. Richard Williams taught himself tennis from instructional videos and trained Venus and Serena on the public courts of East Compton, surrounded by gang activity and broken glass. The family moved to West Palm Beach in 1991 so the sisters could attend Rick Macci's tennis academy. Serena turned pro at 14 in 1995, debuting at the Bell Challenge in Quebec. By 1997, she was ranked No. 99 in the world. By 1999, she'd won the US Open.
The Compton Courts
1985-1991 · East Compton Park
Two girls, ages four and five, hitting balls on cracked public courts while their father picks up glass and pushes shopping carts full of old tennis balls. Gang members watch from the bleachers. Richard Williams tells anyone who'll listen: these girls will be the best in the world.
Pro Debut at 14
October 28, 1995 · Quebec City
Serena Williams plays her first WTA match at the Bell Challenge. She loses in the first round to Annie Miller 1-6, 1-6. She is 14 years old, ranked No. 304 in the world, and completely unbothered by the loss.
Scene 09
filmed
vs. Hingis — US Open Final
W 6-3, 7-6
The First Grand Slam
September 11, 1999 · Arthur Ashe Stadium
At 17, Serena defeats Martina Hingis in straight sets to win the US Open. Richard's plan, written on notebook paper in Compton, has produced a Grand Slam champion. She holds the trophy and screams. She is just getting started.
Off the Court
On September 14, 2003, Serena's half-sister Yetunde Price was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting in Compton — on the same streets where the Williams sisters learned tennis. The tragedy haunted both sisters. Serena has spoken about how Yetunde's death reshaped her understanding of what mattered beyond trophies.
2002 – 2003 · The Serena Slam
Four in a Row
She held all four Grand Slam trophies at once. They had to invent a name for it.
Between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open, Serena won four consecutive Grand Slam titles — the "Serena Slam." She defeated Venus in the finals of all four. It was the most dominant stretch in modern women's tennis. She was 20 and 21 years old, crushing the field with a 130 mph serve and a forehand that sounded like a cannon. Then came the injuries, the grief of losing Yetunde, and a period of wandering.
Scene 14
filmed
vs. Venus — French Open Final
W 7-5, 6-3
Sister Act I
June 8, 2002 · Roland Garros, Paris
The first of four consecutive Slam finals against Venus. The crowd doesn't know how to react — cheering for one sister means cheering against the other. Serena wins in straight sets. Richard watches from the stands with a sign that reads: "Welcome to the Williams Show."
Scene 17
filmed
vs. Venus — Australian Open Final
W 7-6, 3-6, 6-4
The Serena Slam Completes
January 25, 2003 · Melbourne Park
Four Slams. Four finals against Venus. Four wins. She holds all four trophies at once. No woman has done it since Steffi Graf in 1994. They call it the Serena Slam because there's no other name for what she just did.
4 Slams held
21 years old
2004 – 2008 · The Wilderness
They Counted Her Out
Injuries, grief, depression, and a ranking that fell to 139. Everyone said she was finished. Everyone was wrong.
After the Serena Slam, everything fell apart. A knee injury at the 2003 Wimbledon required surgery. Yetunde was murdered weeks later. Serena battled depression, weight fluctuations, and a loss of motivation. She played only four events in 2006. Her ranking dropped to 139. Pundits wrote her obituary as a tennis player. She fired back with an Australian Open title in 2007 — unseeded, ranked 81st, beating five seeded players en route to the trophy.
The Ranking: 139
2006 · The Wilderness
Two years of minimal play. Four events in 2006. A ranking of 139. ESPN runs a segment asking if Serena Williams is finished. She watches it at home in Palm Beach. She doesn't say anything. She starts training again the next morning.
Scene 25
filmed
vs. Sharapova — Australian Open Final
W 6-1, 6-2
Unseeded, Unranked, Unstoppable
January 27, 2007 · Melbourne Park
Ranked 81st. Unseeded. She destroys Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-2 in the final. Nobody who counted her out will ever make that mistake again. It's the most improbable Grand Slam run since Jimmy Connors in 1991.
81st ranked
5 seeds beaten
Off the Court
During the wilderness years, Serena pursued fashion design, launching her clothing line Aneres (her name spelled backward). Critics said she cared more about fashion than tennis. She cared about both. The idea that a Black woman couldn't be elite at multiple things was the real problem.
2009 – 2015 · The Golden Era
The Queen of the Court
She won 13 more Grand Slams between the ages of 27 and 33. The back nine was better than the front.
From 2009 to 2015, Serena won 10 Grand Slam singles titles. She completed a second Serena Slam in 2014-2015. She held the No. 1 ranking for 186 consecutive weeks — the longest streak in WTA history. At the 2012 London Olympics, she won gold in both singles and doubles. She was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year in 2015 at age 34. The argument about the greatest female athlete of all time was over.
Scene 32
filmed
vs. Sharapova — Wimbledon Final
W 6-1, 5-7, 6-2
Wimbledon V
July 9, 2012 · Centre Court, Wimbledon
Her fifth Wimbledon title. She beats Agnieszka Radwanska in the final. Three weeks later, she'll win Olympic gold on the same court. The All England Club, the whitest institution in sport, belongs to a Black woman from Compton.
Scene 38
filmed
vs. Muguruza — Wimbledon Final
W 6-4, 6-4
Serena Slam II
July 11, 2015 · Centre Court, Wimbledon
Her 21st Grand Slam. She holds all four majors simultaneously for the second time in her career. She's 33 years old. Steffi Graf's Open Era record of 22 is one Slam away. The crowd gives her a standing ovation that lasts two minutes.
The 2012 Olympic Slam
August 4, 2012 · London Olympics
Gold in singles. Gold in doubles with Venus. She beats Sharapova 6-0, 6-1 in the singles final on Centre Court — losing only 17 games in the entire tournament. The most dominant Olympic tennis performance in history.
2017 – 2022 · The Chase
Motherhood and the Record
She won the 2017 Australian Open while eight weeks pregnant. Then she nearly died giving birth.
In January 2017, Serena won her 23rd Grand Slam at the Australian Open — while eight weeks pregnant with her daughter Olympia. She defeated Venus in the final 6-4, 6-4. After giving birth in September 2017, she suffered a pulmonary embolism that nearly killed her. She returned to the tour in 2018 and reached four more Grand Slam finals — Wimbledon 2018 and 2019, US Open 2018 and 2019 — winning none. The record of 24, Margaret Court's all-time mark, remained one away.
Scene 44
filmed
vs. Venus — Australian Open Final
W 6-4, 6-4
23 and Pregnant
January 28, 2017 · Melbourne Park
She beats Venus for Slam number 23. She is eight weeks pregnant and nobody knows. The post-match Snapchat — a selfie with the caption "20 weeks" — accidentally reveals the pregnancy to the world. She had won a Grand Slam carrying another life inside her.
23 Slams
8 weeks pregnant
The Birth and the Blood Clots
September 1, 2017 · West Palm Beach
Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. is born via emergency C-section. The next day, Serena feels short of breath. She has a pulmonary embolism. She tells the nurses she needs a CT scan — they initially dismiss her. She insists. She's right. She nearly dies because a hospital didn't listen to a Black woman about her own body.
Scene 52
post-production
vs. Osaka — US Open Final
L 2-6, 4-6
The 2018 US Open Final
September 8, 2018 · Arthur Ashe Stadium
A coaching violation. A point penalty. A game penalty. Serena calls umpire Carlos Ramos a thief. She loses to Naomi Osaka while the crowd boos the outcome. Osaka cries during the trophy ceremony. The most controversial Grand Slam final in modern history. The debate about sexism in officiating will never end.
Off the Court
Serena married Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in November 2017 in a New Orleans ceremony attended by Beyonce, Kim Kardashian, and Anna Wintour. She launched Serena Ventures, a VC firm that has invested in over 60 companies. By 2022, her off-court empire was worth more than her $94 million in career prize money.
2022 · The Farewell
Evolving Away From Tennis
She didn't call it retirement. She called it evolution.
In August 2022, Serena announced in Vogue that she was "evolving away from tennis." The US Open became her farewell tournament. She beat Danka Kovinic in the first round, then Anett Kontaveit — the world No. 2 — in three sets before 29,000 screaming fans. She lost in the third round to Ajla Tomljanovic. She walked off Arthur Ashe Stadium with a wave and a smile. Twenty-seven years. Twenty-three Grand Slams. The greatest career in tennis history.
The Vogue Cover
August 9, 2022
"I have never liked the word retirement," she writes. "Maybe the best word to describe what I'm up to is evolution." The Vogue cover shows her in a flowing dress, not a tennis outfit. She's choosing the terms of her own departure. She's always chosen her own terms.
Scene 63
filmed
vs. Kontaveit — US Open 2R
W 7-6, 2-6, 6-2
One Last Roar
August 31, 2022 · Arthur Ashe Stadium
She beats the world No. 2 in three sets in front of 29,000 people who know these might be the last competitive points she ever plays. The noise level is measured at 90 decibels. When she breaks Kontaveit in the third set, the stadium shakes.
Scene 66
filmed
vs. Tomljanovic — US Open 3R
L 5-7, 7-6, 1-6
The Last Match
September 2, 2022 · Arthur Ashe Stadium
She fights for three sets. She loses. She waves goodbye to the crowd. Tina Turner's "Simply the Best" plays over the speakers. Venus is in the stands crying. Olympia is watching from a suite. Twenty-seven years end with a wave and a smile on the court where it all began.