Serena Williams is back in the Wimbledon draw for singles. The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion has re-entered the anti-doping testing pool and accepted a wild card, setting up a return after years away from the format.
She is 44 and has played only two doubles matches in this comeback spell. That makes the move a genuine test, not a ceremonial appearance, because she is trying to step into Grand Slam singles again after a long break from the sport.
Serena Williams and the wild card
Williams said she was "evolving away" from the sport in 2022, then re-entered the anti-doping testing pool late last year. The path back to singles required that step before she could take the wild card and return to the Wimbledon draw in the event that made her name.
Her record at Wimbledon explains why the entry carries weight. She first appeared there in 1998 and reached the singles third round that year, then won the title for the first time in 2002 by beating Venus in the final. She added titles in 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016.
Monica Puig on Serena Williams
Monica Puig said she was "surprised" to see Williams accept a singles wild card. "I had seen in an interview she had said she was going to ease her way into playing singles and I know there was some speculation that she was going to do it, I just didn't think she was going to come back that soon after hearing that interview, but I just think it's really exciting," Puig said at the Hurlingham Club.
She added: "This is great for tennis, great for Wimbledon as well, and I can see why she wants to come back and play singles." Puig also said, "There's a lot of opportunity out there," and pointed to the churn of results by saying, "We see there's a lot of upsets here and there, there's a lot that can happen in each and every tournament and Serena has the mindset of a champion."
That is the friction in this comeback. Williams has seven Wimbledon singles titles, 23 Grand Slam singles titles and 39 major titles overall, but she is trying to translate a short doubles return into a singles run at 44. She also has only two doubles matches behind her in this return, and one of them in Berlin ended in a first-round loss alongside Karolina Muchova.
For Wimbledon, the draw now includes a player whose ceiling is obvious and whose current level is still being revealed in real time. For Williams, the next steps will depend on how her body and match rhythm hold up once the singles draw turns into actual rounds.
