Serena ends boycott, will play at Indian Wells

Serena Williams will play at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., ending a 14-year boycott of the tournament. 

She announced the decision in an exclusive article published on Time.com and in a video released on YouTube. 

Williams boycotted the tournament, where she won her first pro match in 1997, and defeated Steffi Graf in the '99 final, since 2001, after an incident involving her sister Venus and the fans.

She writes:

When I arrived at Indian Wells in 2001, I was looking to take another title. I was ready. But however ready I was, nothing could have prepared me for what happened in the final. As I walked out onto the court, the crowd immediately started jeering and booing. In my last match, the semifinals, I was set to play my sister, but Venus had tendinitis and had to pull out. Apparently that angered many fans. Throughout my whole career, integrity has been everything to me. It is also everything and more to Venus. The false allegations that our matches were fixed hurt, cut and ripped into us deeply. The undercurrent of racism was painful, confusing and unfair. In a game I loved with all my heart, at one of my most cherished tournaments, I suddenly felt unwelcome, alone and afraid. ...

When I was booed at Indian Wells - by what seemed like the whole world - my voice of doubt became real. I didn’t understand what was going on in that moment. But worse, I had no desire to even win. It happened very quickly.

She goes on, saying the incident haunted her, Venus and especially their father, who was left hurt and angry. She said she'd never play in the tournament again.

It has been difficult for me to forget spending hours crying in the Indian Wells locker room after winning in 2001, driving back to Los Angeles feeling as if I had lost the biggest game ever - not a mere tennis game but a bigger fight for equality. Emotionally it seemed easier to stay away. There are some who say I should never go back. There are others who say I should've returned years ago. I understand both perspectives very well and wrestled with them for a long time. I'm just following my heart on this one. ...

Indian Wells was a pivotal moment of my story, and I am a part of the tournament’s story as well. Together we have a chance to write a different ­ending.

The tournament runs from March 9-22.