Venus Williams has hinted that she will bounce back and return to court in a heartfelt social media post after her early Wimbledon exit.
Williams entered the 2023 Wimbledon on a wildcard and faced a tough opponent in round one - Roland Garros quarter-finalist Elina Svitolina. Throughout the contest, Williams was visibly struggling with mobility as her knee was heavily strapped, and a painful slip on the greasy surface mid-way through the first set added to the five-time Wimbledon champion's difficulties.
Eventually, Williams lost in straight sets and bowed out of her 24th main draw at Wimbledon. But, after taking time to reflect on the loss, the seven-time Grand Slam champion shared her thoughts via Instagram and she expressed her desire to respond to the defeat by working hard.
"I’m not sure how I managed to smile in this moment but I don’t remember my face looking like this…pleasant…I felt just the opposite. I felt like everything slipped away from me so quickly and I was disappointed that I wasn’t stronger to pull out the match despite the circumstances."
"I’m happy I can look back at this moment and see I smiled. I felt like crying. But as an fyi I didn’t cry. I don’t have time for crying when I’m trying to get to the next level. I sat in the locker room right after thinking…to figure out what I could learn from this and plotting how I was going to be better."
"I believe in less time crying and more time working."
During the first-round loss, Williams cut a frustrated figure and she battled on through the clear signs of knee pain. However, the 43-year-old was eager to let fans know that she was gracious in defeat, in contrast to her focussed and steely look on court.
"I also believe in being a good sport. You win and lose in life. You can’t cry when you are losing. You have to get to learning. It’s a bad sport if you can’t at least try to be a good sports person in the moment of defeat and allow your opponent to enjoy their moment of victory…until your moment comes."
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