Serena Williams' shell-shocked reaction said it all. The American's post-match press conference, following her defeat in the Australian Open semi-finals to Naomi Osaka, was barely three minutes old before she dismissed herself while fighting back the tears.
The overwhelming emotions may have been caused by another opportunity missed. Williams remains stuck on 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the most recent clinched just over four years ago at Melbourne Park when she was approximately six weeks pregnant.
Since then, four major finals have come and gone in her pursuit of a record-equalling 24th, including the infamous defeat to Osaka in the 2018 US Open final which descended into chaos after Williams saw red, berated the umpire, and was deducted a game.
Thursday inside Rod Laver Arena was a far less hostile occasion but one that proved no less heartbreaking for Williams.
It all started so well, too. The 10th seed took advantage of a wayward start by Osaka to claim a 2-0 lead. Williams then had break and game points in the next three games and could conceivably have led 5-0. As it was, Osaka found her range and rhythm while the errors started to accumulate on Williams' racquet. Instead of holding a commanding lead, the American lost five straight games and never really recovered.
After losing the first set and falling behind a break in the second, lesser players may have folded when faced with a rampant Osaka. Williams, of course, is not most players and she continued to fight. A break back to level the set at 4-4 gave her a glimmer of hope, but Osaka delivered an immediate response to break again, this time to love, before serving out the match with ease.
"The difference today was errors," Williams said in her news conference. "Honestly, it was opportunities where I could have won. I could have been up 5-love. I just made so many errors.
"Not like I was on the run or anything, they were just easy, easy mistakes. It was a big error day for me today." Williams looked genuinely exasperated with herself as she reflected on her performance, clearly feeling she lost the match more so than Osaka winning it.
That, though, would be a disservice to Osaka who was outstanding and thoroughly deserved her 6-3, 6-4 victory.
Perhaps then in addition to feelings of missed opportunity for Williams is a realisation that, at the age of 39 and with Osaka proving a formidable foe, her chances of capturing that historic major are fast diminishing. Williams has over the past few weeks played as well as she has at any time over the past four years and it simply wasn't good enough against a high-quality opponent.
Williams' emotional press conference and her hand-on-heart farewell to the crowd led to speculation that this could have been the great champion's last hurrah in Melbourne. "I don't know, if I ever say farewell I wouldn't tell anyone," Williams said in response.
Soon after, Williams made her tearful exit – from the room and from the tournament. It was almost symbolic that the player ushered in to replace her in the press conference room is the one who appears destined to succeed Williams as the biggest star in female tennis.
The Japanese player's global appeal – as a world-class athlete, social activist, and amiable personality – has already seen her earnings skyrocket to make her the highest-paid female athlete in the world.
Osaka may be friendly and personable off the court, but on it she is a different proposition. The 23-year-old is already a three-time Grand Slam champion and is the big favourite to add a fourth when she faces American Jennifer Brady on Saturday.
"For me, I have this mentality that people don't remember the runners-up. You might, but the winner's name is the one that's engraved," said Osaka, who has gone on to win every Grand Slam title after reaching the quarter-final stage.
"I think I fight the hardest in the finals. I think that's where you sort of set yourself apart."
And set herself apart she has, just like Williams before her.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
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Landfill in numbers
• Landfill gas is composed of 50 per cent methane
• Methane is 28 times more harmful than Co2 in terms of global warming
• 11 million total tonnes of waste are being generated annually in Abu Dhabi
• 18,000 tonnes per year of hazardous and medical waste is produced in Abu Dhabi emirate per year
• 20,000 litres of cooking oil produced in Abu Dhabi’s cafeterias and restaurants every day is thrown away
• 50 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s waste is from construction and demolition
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is the most popular virtual currency in the world. It was created in 2009 as a new way of paying for things that would not be subject to central banks that are capable of devaluing currency. A Bitcoin itself is essentially a line of computer code. It's signed digitally when it goes from one owner to another. There are sustainability concerns around the cryptocurrency, which stem from the process of "mining" that is central to its existence.
The "miners" use computers to make complex calculations that verify transactions in Bitcoin. This uses a tremendous amount of energy via computers and server farms all over the world, which has given rise to concerns about the amount of fossil fuel-dependent electricity used to power the computers.
THE BIO: Mohammed Ashiq Ali
Proudest achievement: “I came to a new country and started this shop”
Favourite TV programme: the news
Favourite place in Dubai: Al Fahidi. “They started the metro in 2009 and I didn’t take it yet.”
Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad
