Serena Williams’ daughter inspired Wimbledon reunion with Venus

Serena Williams’ daughter is playing doubles matchmaker.

Hours after it was announced Williams and her sister Venus Williams will reunite at Wimbledon for the women’s doubles competition, Williams revealed that her 8-year-old daughter Olympia came up with the idea.

“My daughter, Olympia, told me I should play with Venus,” Williams said on Tuesday at the Berlin Open, where she suffered a first-round doubles loss with partner Karolína Muchová. “She’s always right… she’s very smart. She’s very wise, I think is a better word. So I said, ‘OK, Olympia, we’ll see if we can do it.'”

Olympia got her wish. The Williams sisters received a wild card entry into Wimbledon and will share the court at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club for the first time since 2016. Together, the duo have won six doubles champions at Wimbledon, 14 major doubles titles overall and three Olympic gold medals in doubles.

The Williams sisters have been equally successful on their own at Wimbledon. Williams, a 23-time major winner, has won the tournament seven times in her career, while five of Venus Williams’ seven major singles titles have come at Wimbledon.

Olympia told @serenawilliams to play doubles with Venus at Wimbledon. 🥹👏 pic.twitter.com/26wti2ueWw

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 16, 2026

More: Serena Williams delivers vintage performance in imperfect tennis return

This will mark Williams’ first match at Wimbledon since 2022. When asked if she’d be interested in the sole Wimbledon singles wild card remaining, Williams played coy and said, “We’ll see.”

Williams, 44, made her competitive return to tennis earlier this month at the HSBC Championship in London, where she partnered with Victoria Mboko. Williams and Mboko won their opening match, which was attended by Olympia, in addition to her husband, Alexis Ohanian, and 2-year-old daughter Adira.

After the win, her first since retiring four years ago, Williams said her daughters were interested in everything but tennis. “Adira wanted to go to the toy store and Olympia wanted to know what was for dinner,” Williams joked.

Williams said her daughters and family were key in her decision to come out of retirement.

“I’m putting no pressure on myself. I’ve had enough pressure,” Williams said earlier this month. “It’s really about my kids getting to see me play. Olympia is a little bit older, Adira is very young, but it’s also still moments like that. An athlete is the best thing you can be and the highest place, and having an opportunity to still be able to possibly do that one last time is kind of cool and exciting.”

Unfortunately, Williams and Mboko’s run was cut short at the HSBC Championship in London when Mboko was forced to retire due to injury.

Reach USA TODAY National Women’s Sports Reporter Cydney Henderson at chenderson@gannett.com and follow her on X at @CydHenderson.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Serena Williams’ daughter inspired Wimbledon reunion with Venus