Serena Williams could easily walk off the court and into the broadcast booth if she wants to, pocketing a handsome paycheck and boosting ratings for a sport that is losing star power, those in the business say.

Serena Williams' dreams of a fairytale finish to her glittering career were dashed on Friday as the tennis icon was sent crashing out of the US Open by Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic.

The U.S. Open turned over Arthur Ashe Stadium to the Williams sisters on Thursday for a prime-time first round doubles match that could have been Serena's last after the pair fell 7-6 (5), 6-4 to the Czech duo of Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova.

Serena Williams roared into the third round of the US Open on Wednesday, overpowering second seed Anett Kontaveit with a battling performance to extend her Grand Slam singles career in dramatic fashion.

Serena Williams said she is "staying vague" over her expected retirement from tennis after reaching the US Open second round on Monday.

After a glittering 27-year professional career in which she became one of the greatest players of all time, Serena Williams is preparing to bid farewell to tennis at the major where it all began.

Serena Williams held strong views on tennis, society as well as her rivals.

Meghan Markle released the first episode of her highly anticipated Spotify podcast titled Archetypes on Tuesday. While the inaugural episode that featured tennis legend Serena Williams lived up to all the hype, it was the cover art accompanying the release of the episode that stole the show.

Serena Williams may have planned retirement her way but the American must be prepared to accept the goodbyes as well as the losses and exit the stage with grace, tennis great Martina Navratilova has told Reuters.

Following are reactions to Serena Williams announcing on Tuesday that she plans to retire from the sport following the U.S. Open:

Serena Williams said on Tuesday she was "evolving away from tennis" and planned to retire from the sport she dominated with 23 Grand Slam titles following the U.S. Open tournament, which begins later this month.

Serena Williams stepped onto a hardcourt for the first time in a year and a half on Monday and fought through for a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Spain's Nuria Parrizas Diaz.

Kwon Soon-woo may munch on a chocolate bar on Centre Court when he tackles defending champion Novak Djokovic in Monday's Wimbledon opener. Meanwhile, Harmony Tan, who takes on Serena Williams on Tuesday, will have plenty of time to devote to her love of surfing should she exit.

Ranked a lowly 1,204 in the world and without a competitive singles match in 12 months, Serena Williams will sweep into Wimbledon targeting what would be her greatest triumph.

Serena Williams delivered one of her most complete performances since returning to the game after the birth of her daughter to rout a helpless Maria Sharapova in the first round of the U.S. Open on Monday.

Serena Williams's quest for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title was put on hold on Saturday after the former world number one was knocked out of the French Open in the third round following a 6-2 7-5 defeat by fellow American Sofia Kenin.

Germany's Angelique Kerber shattered Serena Williams's dreams of an eighth Wimbledon title and record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles trophy with a 6-3, 6-3 win in the final on Saturday.

Three-time champion Serena Williams will make her eagerly-awaited return to Grand Slam tennis on Tuesday with a French Open first-round match against Kristyna Pliskova on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Serena Williams says she lives in fear of blood clots, a condition that surfaced during a harrowing postnatal ordeal in September when she almost died giving birth to her first child.

Serena Williams made her long-awaited comeback to tennis but the 23-time Grand Slam title winner and former world number one suffers defeat, playing alongside big sister Venus in a Fed Cup dead rubber.