The tennis community is abuzz with excitement as Serena Williams gears up to make her return to doubles action. The legendary athlete, who boasts an impressive 39 Grand Slam titles across all formats, has not dismissed the idea of a comeback in singles play.
After a practice session alongside her doubles partner, Victoria Mboko, at Queen’s Club, Williams addressed the media. “I’m not closing the door on singles right now,” she remarked. “I feel like I need a bit more training to compete in singles. We’ll see if I reach that point, and if not, then that’s just not my path at the moment.”
In London, Williams received a wild card entry for the women’s doubles event at the HSBC Championships.
This upcoming match will be her first since her appearance in the third round of the 2022 U.S. Open. Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, is second only to Margaret Court’s record of 24 titles.
Williams and her Canadian partner, Mboko, are scheduled to compete against Erin Routliffe from Australia and American Nicole Melichar-Martinez.
While Williams never officially retired, the comeback comes as a bit of a shock to the mother of two, who announced her decision to “evolve away” from tennis in a personal essay published in Vogue in September of that year.
Williams, who spent 319 weeks as the WTA No. 1 at the peak of her career, is taking a low-pressure approach to her return.
“I don’t need to win,” the seven-time Wimbledon singles champion said. “I’ve won more than most people have in their whole lives, so it’s not that important to me, and it’s important that I keep reminding myself of that, because I don’t have anything to prove.
“I don’t have anything to lose, and everything here is just to gain.”
Despite denying a return to tennis as recently as December, Williams said she ultimately thought: “Why not?” Since her two daughters – Olympia and Adira – are older now, the 44-year-old expressed excitement over having her children experience her competing.
Williams noted that she saw something in Mboko that reminded her a lot of herself. After committing to the tournament, William said she reached out to Mboko via text message.
“For me, right now, it’s really just about so many elements,” Williams said. “It’s really about my kids getting to see me play. Olympia is a little bit older, Adira is very young. An athlete is the best thing that you can be in the highest place, and having an opportunity to still be able to do that, possibly one last time, is kind of cool and exciting.”