Billie Jean King leads tributes to Serena Williams

Billie Jean King, the former women's world No 1, has led tributes to Serena Williams, describing her as the sport's greatest player after the 23-time grand slam singles champions announcement that she is retiring.

In a column for Vogue, Williams said she intended to finish her playing career as an evolution away from tennis and indicated that she could step away from the US Open.

King, who won 12 grand slam singles titles, including six at Wimbledon, said when Serena steps away from tennis, she will leave as the sport's greatest player. After a career that has inspired a new generation of players and fans, she will forever be known as a champion who won on the court and raised the global profile of the sport off of it. According to John McEnroe, the former men's world No 1 of the United States, said of Williams: She should do whatever she wants. Her place in American society has gone to a place where she deserves it after everything she spelled, everything she spelled.

I don't know the answer to whether she wants to play again, I don't think she needs to play again. She is in that level where Michael Jordan, LeBron James and Tom Brady are. She is one of the greatest athletes in the history of any sport, male or female. It seems to be a great place in her life. She added a lot.

Anyone who saw the movie King Richard realises where they came from and where she is now is unbelievable so she can spend the rest of her life not bad huh? Coco Gauff, the current world No 11 hailed Williams as the reason she took up the sport in the first place. I grew up watching her. Gauff said that is the reason why I play tennis after her first-round victory at the Canadian Open in Toronto on Tuesday. Tennis was a white sport and helped a lot, as it was a predominantly white sport. I saw someone who looked like me dominating the game. I was convinced that I could dominate too. Emma Raducanu, the US Open champion, said she definitely changed the game. There is not really a person who has dominated the game like her. I think she changed the game a lot in that respect. She Williams has impacted tennis both on the court and off the court, according to Pam Shriver, the former world no. 3. She has taken tennis off the sports pages and into pop culture. She bridges people of all generations, regardless of background. She has become a great spokesperson, a philanthropist, and she has matured before our eyes.