Serena Williams is, undoubtedly, one of the greatest tennis players, male or female, of all time. With 23 Grand Slams to her name and four Olympic gold medals (three in doubles), the retired star wrote her name in history. While she has hailed Steffi Graf as one of the best players ever, when it comes to the men’s side, she has a clear favorite between Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Back in 2021 in a press conference during the Emilia-Romagna Open in Parma, the younger Williams sister was asked to weigh in on the GOAT debate (via Forbes). “I think two words sum it up: Roger Federer,” Williams said of the Swiss Maestro.
“He’s just a synopsis of greatness and class and amazing and really changed the game. You see players playing like him, moving like him, doing his techniques. The guy is (a) genius,” she described Federer, while admitting that she was a “superfan” of the Swiss, who retired in 2022.
“I just feel like he is really the greatest player,” Williams, who also retired in 2022, said. “You can’t not like the guy, that’s how I feel. His game is so fantastic. If I could only play like him,” she added at the time.

Roger Federer holds the record as the male tennis player with most Wimbledon titles with eight (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Since then, Novak Djokovic has emerged as the male player with the most Grand Slam titles in the Open Era, with 24, tying Margaret Court and having the opportunity to become the player with the most majors overall this year. However, given Williams and Federer’s long-time friendship, her choice is quite expected.

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When Federer said Serena Williams might be the greatest player overall
While Federer has recently leaned toward Djokovic or Nadal as the greatest tennis player, in 2018, the 20-time Grand Slam champion suggested that Serena Williams might be the GOAT of the sport, regardless of gender.
“It’s been fascinating to watch,” Federer told Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal in a profile. “She had a totally different upbringing — I came up through Switzerland with the federation, she did it with her dad and her sister. It’s an amazing story unto itself — and then she became one of the greatest, if not the greatest tennis player of all time.”
When Gay pushed Federer on whether “greatest tennis player of all time” referred to female tennis or tennis overall, Federer didn’t hold back. “Overall,” he replied, making clear his stance.

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The day Federer and Williams shared the court
In 2019, Federer and Williams faced each other for the first, and only, time in their careers at the now extinct Hopman Cup in Australia. Federer and his partner, Belinda Bencic, defeated Williams and Frances Tiafoe in their round robin match. However, both players praised each other in the after-match interview.
“We grew up together, really,” she said about what it meant to her, facing Federer. “It was super cool that we got to do it [facing each other] at such a pinnacle point in both our careers,” she explained.
Meanwhile, Federer praised her serve. “I was nervous returning because you never know. People talk about her serve so much, and I see why it’s such a wonderful serve because you just can’t read it,” he said, while Serena added: “I can’t read yours either!”

Serena Williams and Roger Federer take a selfie during the Hopman Cup in 2019 (Paul Kane/Getty Images)
“We have the same qualities,” he joked. However, he added, in a more serious tone: “She is a great champion, and you see how focused and determined she is, and I love that about her.”
While these two greats have already retired, their accomplishments, as well as emotional moments on the court, such as this one, will definitely stay in the memory of tennis fans all over the world.