Tennis Legend Returns to SW19
Serena Williams, a seven-time Wimbledon singles champion, has accepted a wildcard entry to compete in the women's singles draw at the prestigious tournament later this month. This announcement confirms her surprise return to singles action after a period away from competitive play.
The 44-year-old athlete secured the final spot in the main draw, following an initial announcement on Tuesday. Williams has recently participated in two doubles matches, marking her competitive return after a four-year hiatus from the sport.
Pursuit of a Record
Williams holds seven Wimbledon singles titles, placing her one short of Margaret Court's long-standing record of 24 Grand Slam singles victories. Her return to the singles court at Wimbledon fuels speculation about her pursuit of this significant career milestone.
Earlier this month, when questioned about a potential singles comeback at SW19, Williams had expressed a need for further preparation, stating, "You think I'm ready for singles? I need to get to work." Despite this, her decision to accept the wildcard indicates a readiness to compete at the highest level.
Illustrious Career Highlights
Williams' last singles victory at Wimbledon was in 2019, before her loss in the final to Simona Halep of Romania. Throughout her distinguished career, she spent 319 weeks as the world's top-ranked player and has accumulated 73 singles titles on the WTA Tour.
Her achievements also include a career 'Golden Slam' in both singles and doubles, encompassing victories at all four Grand Slams and an Olympic gold medal. She has won every singles major at least three times.
Williams will learn her first-round opponent when the official draw is conducted on Friday, with the tournament scheduled to commence on Monday, June 29.
Previous Wimbledon Appearances
Williams clinched her inaugural Wimbledon singles title in 2002, defeating her sister Venus in the final, a feat she replicated the following year. Subsequent victories followed in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015, and 2016. Her seventh triumph in 2016 drew her level with Steffi Graf's Open era record of 22 major singles titles.
Following maternity leave in 2017, she reached the Wimbledon final in her next two appearances but was defeated by Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep, respectively. Her 2021 campaign was cut short due to injury after only six games against Aliaksandra Sasnovich, leading to doubts about her future in the sport.
In 2022, also as a wildcard entry, she was narrowly defeated by Harmony Tan in a final-set tie-break. When asked if that would be her final Wimbledon appearance, Williams remained ambiguous, stating, "That's a question I can't answer. Who knows? Who knows where I'll pop up?"
Williams boasts an impressive record of 14 titles at Wimbledon, which includes six women's doubles and one mixed doubles title. She also secured Olympic singles and doubles gold on the same courts during the 2012 London Olympics.
With a remarkable 87% win rate, Williams has won 107 of her 123 singles matches on grass courts, making it her most successful surface.
The Path to Return
Williams had widely been expected to conclude her career at the 2022 US Open, having announced she was "evolving away" from tennis. However, her deliberate avoidance of the word 'retirement' left open the possibility of a return.
She has indicated that a primary motivation for her comeback is the desire for her two daughters to witness her play. Williams won the Australian Open while pregnant with her elder daughter, Olympia, and welcomed her second child, Adira, in 2023.
Her daughters were present to watch her win her first doubles match of her return at Queen's alongside Victoria Mboko. The pair later withdrew from the tournament due to a knee injury sustained by Mboko.
Subsequently, Williams competed in doubles in Berlin, where she and Czech partner Karolina Muchova lost their first-round match on Tuesday. Despite remaining coy about a Wimbledon singles appearance after that match, she returned to London the following day and began practicing at SW19 on Thursday.
Source: Serena Williams to make singles comeback at Wimbledon