Serena Williams Says 'Why Not?' in Hsbc Championships Return
Serena Williams said she is back because “Why not?” and made her first public comments since announcing a comeback at the hsbc championships in Queen’s. The 23-time Grand Slam champion, now 44 years old, said she had not planned to return in December before changing course.
Williams and Mboko at Queen's
Williams chose 19-year-old Victoria Mboko as her doubles partner for the week, pairing an established champion with the World No. 9 and No. 3 seed at Queen's. They will face Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe in the first round.
Mboko received the surprise message while competing in Strasbourg three weeks ago. Her reaction was immediate: “How could I decline that?”
Why Williams Returned
Williams said the decision came after she kept talking through different possibilities and decided to have fun with something different. “In December I definitely was not. And then I was just talking to a few people and just, you know, chatting about different possibilities and just having fun. You know, something a little bit different. And so I just kept talking and talking, and then I was like, well why not.”
Her reason is tied to her daughters, Olympia and Adira, who are 8 and 2. Williams said she wants them to see what hard work and perseverance can make possible, and added that she might be able to do something “one last time.”
Mboko's Rise Matters
Williams first noticed Mboko last August, when the teenager won the Montreal title by beating Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Naomi Osaka. That run stood out to Williams because Mboko kept winning the next time she played.
“I was quite impressed with her game,” Williams said. “I was impressed with her attitude.” She added, “What I liked the most about her was that the next time she played, she still kept winning. I was like, 'OK, I love that.' It reminded me a lot of myself.”
Mboko said meeting Williams in person changed the experience from what she had seen on television. “Seeing someone on TV versus actually talking to them in person and having conversations, it's very different,” she said. “I think she's really nice, and she's very personable. Like, very relatable. And I think she's really funny. So I found a lot of comfort with her.”
For Williams, the return now has a partner, a first-round match, and a clear reason attached to it. For Mboko, it is a chance to share the court with a player she said yes to without hesitation, and to do it at Queen's this week.
