Washington

American legend Serena Williams, winner of 23 Grand Slam titles, announced her retirement from tennis on Tuesday, saying she is "evolving away" from the sport.

The 40-year-old tennis star said that the best word to describe what she is up to is "evolution" and that she wants to grow her family.

"I have never liked the word retirement. It doesn't feel like a modern word to me. I've been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people," Serena said.

Earlier this year, she was knocked out at Wimbledon in her first singles match. However, she has now set her eyes on the US Open in what could prove to be her farewell tournament.

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Serena has been ranked singles world number one by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for 319 weeks, including a joint-record 186 consecutive weeks. She also finished as the year-end number one five times.