The announcement that no one expected
The All England Club confirmed on Sunday that Serena Williams (44 years old) received the last wild card for the Wimbledon women’s singles tournament. The tennis legend returns to individual competition after almost four years of absence.
“Serena Williams (USA) receives the last wild card for the women’s singles tournament,” the club reported in a statement.
Williams had announced her return to professional tennis three weeks ago, but the decision to play singles on grass was kept on hold until the last minute.
Doubts and preparation
After losing a doubles match in Berlin, Serena seemed undecided. “Do you think I’m ready for singles?” she asked a reporter and then her partner Karolina Muchova, who responded: “I think I would be interested.”
“Question of the moment, right?” Williams said. “Don’t know”.
Finally it was decided. Her last singles match was at the 2022 US Open, when she lost to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round. At that time he declared that he was “evolving” away from tennis. Their second daughter was born in 2023.
History and present
Serena has 23 Grand Slam singles titles, seven of them at Wimbledon. She also won 14 Grand Slams in doubles with her sister Venus, six at the All England Club. In 2012 he won Olympic gold in singles and doubles in London.
In her last appearance at Wimbledon (2022) she lost in the first round to Harmony Tan. This week she won a doubles match at Queen’s Club but then retired due to an injury to her partner. In Berlin, Serena and Muchova fell to Giuliana Olmos and Erin Routliffe.
What’s coming
She has no singles ranking (she is ranked 593rd in doubles) and could face rivals like Iga Swiatek or Aryna Sabalenka from the first round. The draw takes place on Friday.
“This is not a drill,” Wimbledon posted on social media.
The WTA added: “Name a more iconic comeback…we will wait.”
