TORONTO — Karl Hale has been the tournament director at the National Bank Open since 2006 and has never seen anything like the last 24 hours since Serena Williams said she was winding down her professional tennis career.
“We heard it yesterday morning, and immediately ticket sales picked up,” Hale said. “In the players’ lounge, you heard the chatter. It’s the first time I’ve seen so many players watch a practice. She practiced at 9 a.m., and everybody was out there watching her.”
Williams, who will play a second-round match against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland on Wednesday night, could be playing for the last time in front of Canadian tennis fans at this tournament.