I’m very emotional and very sensitive: Serena Williams

She is one of the most well known faces of tennis and always makes a statement on the court, and off it as well. 26-year-old Serena Williams has captured the imagination of the tennis world and created headlines for more than a decade now.

The former world number one currently ranked 9th in the WTA (Women's Tennis Association) rankings has battled marquee players from Steffi Graf to Monica Seles and her own sister Venus Williams, pocketing eight Grand Slam singles titles and an Olympic gold medal in the women’s doubles. She is also the fifth woman in history to complete a career Grand Slam and to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously.

But the last few years have been a struggle. Serena was forced out of action on account of injury. But like a true champion, she has risen quite literally from the ashes. 2008 has seen her make a smashing return. Her last win was at the WTA Canara Bank Bangalore Open. Off court she is the brand ambassador for HP and is using her creative ability as a budding designer with her line Aneres.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18's Shereen Bhan, Sarena said the biggest learning for her is that she can’t give up. Calling herself a very emotional and sensitive person, Sarena said she wears her emotions on her sleeve. When asked about her retirement plans, the tennis champ said that right now she is having too much fun with tennis and that she cannot even look that far into the future.

Excerpts of CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with Serena Williams:

Q: It’s been an exiting time for you in India. We have seen you have splashed all over in saris and eating Indian food. Now of course you have won the Bangalore Open. What’s the India visit to you meant?

A: I have had so much fun in India thus far. It’s been a great experience, everyone has been so open and so welcoming and so warming towards me and my whole family. It’s just made India for me unforgettable thus far.

Q: What’s been the big surprise since you came to India. Did you have a pre-conceived notion of what it was going to be like? What’s been the bigger surprise for you?

A: No, I didn’t have a pre-conceived notion. I’ve always wanted to come to India, it was just something that I’ve always wanted to do.

Q: You started playing when you could barely walk and you won your first tournament when you were about four-and-a-half. There isn’t any other life that you have actually lived, you’ve pretty much lived your entire life on a tennis court. Was there ever a thought or an idea of something else that you wanted to do?

A: I started playing when I was four and I didn’t play a tournament till much later after that. But tennis was so fun for me and for my sister, we just had a lot of fun and it was like our life. We knew that we would go to the tennis court everyday and it just became a part of our life and at the same time, it was just something that I just did. I cannot imagine life without it.

Q: 2007 was in a sense a turnaround year for you. You moved back into the top 10 rankings. You didn’t have a couple of good years between 2004 and 2006. What’s 2008 looking like to you?

A: I am just keeping a positive attitude. My main goal is to just have a lot of fun, enjoy what I do and really enjoy the battle.

Q: You are doing so many different things at this point in time, tennis of course is the mainstay. You are also doing your own clothing line, you are also the brand ambassador for a technology company. In that sense, which role do you enjoy the most at this point in time and how do you juggle between everything?

A: I am having so much fun with each and everything that I am doing. I am having a blast with HP, I absolutely love all the HP products and I think the ad that they did is just really brilliant and I had a lot of fun doing that. Not only that, I also got to design a dress for the ad which is the last dress that you see in the HP ad, which is really cool. So it was great for Aneres, it was great for HP and of course, I enjoy tennis. At this point of my life, I am just having so much fun in everything that I do.

Q: How involved with the business of the clothesline are you because I know you are creatively involved, but are you also involved from a business point of view? Are you sort of the entrepreneur as well?

A: Definitely. My parents raised all of us, all my sisters to be really into the business side of things because that I think is most important. You never want anything to slide under your nose or under your eyes.

It has been difficult. I had to take myself away from Aneres a little bit because I was overly involved. I was playing tennis and I said, “Okay, I just got to focus on tennis right now and then worry about that later”.

Q: What’s been the biggest learning, not from a tennis point of view, but from a business point of view so far for you?

A: The biggest learning for me is that you can’t give up. If one direction doesn’t work, then you have to go another direction. We have been trying so many different alleys and so many different directions, but we always keep a positive attitude.

Q: Over a decade long career that you have had, you’ve been the fifth woman in history to have a career Grand Slam. What’s been the high point to your mind? What’s been the one moment that stood out in your mind?

A: Honestly, I think I would have to go with the Olympics. Growing up you see Carl Lewis and you see Jackie Joyner Kersee, Greg Louganis, you see all these great Olympic Champions and you are just sort of want to get there. When you get there and to actually have a gold medal, for me is the best thing. It was great, it is awesome. 

Q: The biggest disappointment?

A: I don’t even think about disappointments.

Q: Just move on?

A: Yes, I don’t even think about that.

Q: Any one instance where you thought, “I really wished that I could have won this tournament?”

A: I think that about every tournament I don’t win.

Q: Who is the real Serena Williams? We know that you like to have fun, we know that you like to enjoy tennis immensely, we know you are a tech person as well and you believe in family and friends. But what is the side of you that we don’t know about?

A: I think a lot of people don’t know that I am very creative. I love to write which is where my computer comes in really handy because I am always writing. I would love to write a script, I would love to write a screenplay and I always have these different ideas. So, I am always on my HP.

Q: Have you already got something together?

A: Yes, I have ideas that I have written down.

Q: Are they comedies, are they romantic?

A: Honestly, I write mostly romance, but sarcastic comedy that doesn’t really have good ending. It’s interesting any way.

Q: You are not into happy endings?

A: I am into happy endings.

Q: But edgy happy ending?

A: Not edgy, but really realistic.

Q: Where did this side come from?

A: I don’t know. I just have this creative side of my brain, it’s really creative and I am always thinking of new ideas.

Q: But have you actually spoken to people, are we going to see that screenplay being translated into celluloid reality anytime soon?

A: I don’t know, I have a lot of things written down. Maybe I should move on that and I think I will.

Q: So writing is one part that we didn’t know about. Are you into music and things like that as well?

A: Of course I am into music, I love anything that’s popular. Whatever they play on mainstream radio is really what I am into.

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