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. Williams, 40, ended the guessing game around her future earlier this month by revealing that the “countdown” to her retirement had started, with her final Grand Slam appearance at the US Open starting on Monday. “There comes a time in life when we have to decide to move in a different direction. That time is always hard when you love something so much,” she wrote recently.

Faces Kovinic in Rd One

The announcement sets the stage for what will be an emotional farewell for Williams, who faces unheralded World No.80 Danka Kovinic in Monday’s first round. Williams won the first of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles as a 17-year-old at the 1999 US Open, beating Martina Hingis in the final.  That breakthrough victory confirmed what had become apparent ever since her professional debut four years earlier: that Williams, alongside sister Venus, was a rising force in women’s tennis.