‘I Can’t Pick Up My Kids, I Hate It’ – Serena Williams Blasts ‘Unprofessional’ Anti-Doping System

Serena Williams is in the midst of a spectacular comeback and will make her return to the Grand Slam stage at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships.

Ahead of her return, the tennis legend has questioned some of the new anti-doping rules and measures that all players have to adhere to, calling them “grueling” and “unreasonable.”

Serena Williams Hits Out at Anti-Doping System

Williams spent more than two decades at the top of the tennis world, winning 23 singles Grand Slams and 14 women’s doubles Grand Slams alongside her sister Venus. The sisters will reunite to compete in women’s doubles at Wimbledon, with Serena also receiving a wildcard to compete in women’s singles.

Ahead of her return, Williams was asked about the arduous nature of the anti-doping system that tennis players have to deal with.

“It’s grueling. They changed the rules. I didn’t know some of the rules. Apparently, if you miss a test outside of your window, it still counts as missed. So I can’t go pick up my kids. It’s unprofessional. I hate it. I think it’s necessary, but if I want to go places outside of my window, I should be able to go without it counting as a missed test. So I think that there has to be a different way to make it reasonable because that’s just unreasonable,” Serena Williams said during her pre-Wimbledon press conference.

Williams also spoke about how the busy nature of her life makes it challenging to report where she will be for 24 hours a day.

“That was a big reason why I didn’t want to come back either because my life is busy. I run a company, I travel the world, I have children. So I could be in different cities. Getting that discipline of reporting, I don’t mind. But just getting into that routine, learning the new rules, and reporting every day where I’m going to be 24 hours a day is just different,” she added.

Serena Williams’ comments come in the wake of the four-year suspension handed to Markéta Vondroušová for refusing an out-of-competition anti-doping test. The 2023 Wimbledon champion claimed that the anti-doping agent arrived at her house unannounced and outside of her allotted time, causing her to have an acute-stress reaction.

MORE: 6 Players Who Are at Risk of R1 Upsets at Wimbledon, Featuring Iga Świątek, Taylor Fritz

The ITIA maintained that anti-doping agents can test players outside their allotted times and that the test refusal should carry the maximum possible penalty.

However, an independent tribunal ruled that she did not have a compelling justification for refusing the test. The ban, pending an appeal, means that she will not be able to compete in WTA-sanctioned events or Grand Slams till 2030.