Serena Williams takes comeback to new level: Wimbledon singles wildcard

Serena Williams will take her comeback to a new level by competing in the Wimbledon ladies’ singles as a wild card, the Grand Slam tournament announced Sunday, June 21. 

The 44-year-old was already set to join her older sister, Venus Williams, in the women’s doubles.  

After retiring in 2022, Williams announced her return to professional tennis earlier this month. Now, she’s filling the final spot in Wimbledon’s main draw. Her first-round opponent will be revealed when the draw takes place on Friday, June 26. The tournament begin on Monday, June 29.  

Williams was intentional in leaving the door open for a return four years ago, saying she’d be “evolving away” from tennis instead explicitly saying she was retiring at the time.  

Now, her children are 8 and 3 years old and she’s been open about returning mainly so that they can see her play. Shortly after it was announced that Serena and Venus were set to reunite at Wimbledon for the women’s doubles competition, Serena Williams revealed it was her eldest daughter, Olympia, who came up with the idea.

But when asked around the same time if she would consider a wildcard singles return, Williams remained vague.  

“Oh my gosh, there’s some left?” she asked. “Well, I better get to practice! You think I’m ready for singles? I need to get to work.” 

More: Serena Williams delivers vintage performance in imperfect tennis return

Williams’ post-retirement run began on June 8 at the HSSBC Championship in London, where she partnered with young Canadian Victoria Mboko. Williams and Mboko won their opening match, but their journey was cut short when Mboko was ruled out with an injury.  

Williams also competed at the WTA 500 Berlin Open last week. She partnered with Czech player Karolina Muchova in the doubles draw, and they were eliminated in the opening round.  

For Williams, a return to Wimbledon’s historic grass courts is simply adding to an already legendary resume. She’s won 23 major titles in her career, including seven Wimbledon singles championships, leaving her one win short of Margaret Court’s long-standing women’s record of 24 Grand Slam wins. She also boasts a career ‘Golden Slam’ in singles and doubles, having won all four Grand Slams and Olympic gold and every singles major at least three times. 

Williams last played singles at the 2022 U.S. Open, taking a three-set loss to Australia’s Ajla Tomljanović. She won her last Wimbledon title in 2016, when she and Venus also claimed overall victory in the doubles event.   

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Next stop on Serena Williams’ post-retirement tour: Wimbledon singles