New York

American Tennis legend Serena Williams bid farewell to the sport on Friday, after her defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia in her third-round match of the women's singles in the ongoing US Open 2022.

Serena, only a few weeks away from turning 41 and perhaps the greatest woman the world of tennis has ever seen, lost the match 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-1.

Serena was heading into the match ranked at world number 605, but still, the Arthur Ashe Stadium was jam-packed to witness the tennis legend play her 1014th match and perhaps, the final one of her storied career, which boasts of 23 Grand Slam singles titles.

Williams has 73 WTA tour titles, with Martina Navratilova of America leading the list with 167, followed by Chris Evert (157) and Stefanie Graf (107).

Tomljanovic on the other hand was in red hot form, having won 15 out of her previous 19 matches.

Serena played her heart out for three hours and four minutes, but fell short in what could be her final game as a player.

The WTA tweeted a thank you video message for the tennis great.

Dear Serena...

A letter from Tennis ✉️#ThankYouSerena | @AustralianOpen | @rolandgarros | @Wimbledon | @usopen pic.twitter.com/FVtVORpVvn

— wta (@WTA) September 3, 2022

"I thank everyone that is here, that has been on my side for so many years, decades, literally decades. It all started with my parents. They deserve everything. I am grateful for them. These are happy tears, I guess. And I would not be Serena if it was not for Venus. Thank you, Venus. She is the only reason Serena Williams ever existed. It has been a fun ride. It has been the most incredible ride and journey I have ever been on in my life," Williams was quoted as saying per US Open official website.