Serena Williams is shutting down rumors that she is planning a return to tennis.
“Oh no, it’s not coming back. This wildfire is crazy,” Williams posted on Tuesday’s X.
The former tennis pro’s career became the center of attention after it was reported that Williams had requested re-registration into the International Tennis Integrity Authority’s (ITIA) International Registration Testing Pool, a requirement for drug testing for active players.
According to The Atlantic, an ITIA spokesperson told the outlet that Williams’ rejoining the testing pool does not formalize her potential return. However, her representative said she does not know if this “means she will return” or if Williams is “just giving herself the option” to return.
“All I can say is she went back to the pool and could be missing,” Bassett said.
The reported move left some of the retired athlete’s fans wondering why she would be interested in re-admitting to ITIA given her admission.
“Then why did you apply to rejoin the test pool?” one netizen wrote.
The rest of Williams’ fans were less than happy to see the tennis star’s news, with some even admitting their denials in this tweet.
“She retired but my denials didn’t. That’s the real wildfire here,” a social media user wrote.
Another wrote: “We made the decision for you.” Meanwhile, a third added: “The bushfires are a reflection of how much people miss you.”
Williams announced that she will retire from professional tennis in August 2022 after competing in the US Open.
Her last fight took place in September, where she lost to Ayla Tomljanovic in the third round.
“These days, if I had to choose between building a tennis resume and starting a family, I would choose the latter,” the mother of two wrote in a personal essay for Vogue.
“There’s no happiness in this topic for me. I know it’s not normal, but it’s very painful,” she said. “This is the hardest thing I could have ever imagined. I hate it. I hate having to be at this crossroads.”
