Serena Williams Cries At Press Conference, Writes Heartbroken Letter To Fans

Feb 19, 2021

After a devastating loss, Serena Williams welled up with tears during her post-game interview on February 18 (ACT).

It was heartbreaking.

The tennis player had just lost a match against Japanese athlete Naomi Osaka at the Australia Open, and the press were interviewing her with a series of typical questions. As the media progressed, it became clear that Serena was starting to get emotional about the game. She reached for her water bottle before putting her head down — and then asked to be excused.

Ugh. We feel so bad. During the interview, the 39-year-old who obviously cares about her craft, admitted to making small mistakes that cost her. Even so, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with getting choked up after a game like that.

Though we’re not into professional sports THAT much, we can understand how hurtful it is to experience defeat when you’ve worked so hard for something. Given what the Australia Open means to Serena — she earned her 23rd Grand Slam title there back in 2017 — we totally get it.

Despite the loss, Williams still thought of her fans. Later in the day, she took to Instagram and wrote them a heartfelt message addressing the outcome of her match. In a very somber message, she wrote:

Melbourne and my Australian fans- Today was not an ideal outcome or performance but it happens… I am so honored to be able to play in front of you all. Your support -your cheers, I only wish I could have done better for you today. I am forever in debt and grateful to each and every single one of you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I adore you.

Wow! What stands out to us is that she apologized for not doing better — when we’re only human, and not every game is going to be great. The fact that she’s owning up to this game not being the greatest says so much about who she is as a person. Also, we can’t help but recognize how gracious she is, and how much support she’s showing her fans. Others might be hurting that she didn’t make it any further, and in her post she addressed all of these people.

You can check out the full IG post (below):

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLbB6shnQDi/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading

We’re wishing Serena a very positive and healthy next few weeks. We totally get it that she might be feeling down right now, but she can only recover from this and move forward. We totally believe in her.

[Image via Serena Williams/Instagram & Australian Open TV/YouTube]

Mental Health