LONDON (AP) — While Iga Swiatek holds the title of defending champion and Aryna Sabalenka is the top-ranked player in women’s singles, it is Serena Williams who commands the spotlight at Wimbledon.
Returning to the famous SW19 postcode, the 44-year-old Williams is set to participate in her first singles match at Wimbledon in four years. She will face No. 53 Maya Joint on Tuesday in the opening round.
Meanwhile, Mirra Andreeva, fresh off her victory at the French Open, awaited the draw with bated breath. The Russian teenager remarked, “I was watching like this because I don’t think anyone in the draw would have wanted to play against Serena. I’m going to speak for myself. I wouldn’t want to play against Serena. I would be just very nervous.”
Williams, who took a break from the sport after her 2022 U.S. Open farewell, has accepted a wild-card entry to compete in both singles and women’s doubles with her sister Venus Williams, who is 46. Her last appearance at Wimbledon saw her fall in the first round to Harmony Tan. The American legend announced she was “evolving” away from tennis following her third-round defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic at Flushing Meadows. She welcomed her second daughter in 2023.
With a history of seven Wimbledon singles titles, Williams might face Swiatek in the third round.
Venus provides some motivation
Williams made her return to competitive tennis earlier this month in a doubles match alongside 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament.
Venus Williams shared, “Unexpectedly, before her first match she asked me did I have any motivational quotes I use for myself. I told her what I was using at the time. I don’t know if that helped or not. She did win the match.”
The Williams sisters are scheduled to play their first-round doubles match against Colombia’s Camila Osorio and Argentina’s Solana Sierra.
Serena and Venus boast 14 Grand Slam doubles titles, with six victories at Wimbledon. Remarkably, their initial two titles at the All England Club in 2000 and 2002 were won as wild cards. “For us it was about the titles, we wanted the Grand Slam titles. We just wanted to bring them home,” Venus said. “We did pretty good.”
Djokovic inspired by Serena
Serena Williams’ tennis comeback has been labeled “inspirational” and “epic” by Novak Djokovic. “That’s what I told her,” Djokovic noted.
He further commented, “I see her in the gym more than I have, I think, seen her when she was at her prime. It tells me that she really wants this to work out the best way possible.”
Djokovic, a 24-time major champion, expressed his admiration for Williams’ illustrious career, adding, “I always admired her career, her journey, her story. Of course, Venus’, as well.”
Gauff and Sabalenka too
Wimbledon’s No. 7 seed, Coco Gauff, acknowledged the significant influence Serena and Venus had on her career. “I played the sport because of them, believed that I could do things because of them. I look up to them a lot,” she stated.
Sabalenka expressed her excitement, saying, “It’s amazing what she’s doing. Also it’s Serena Williams, everyone was talking about that. She’s bringing more eyes on tennis. It’s a good thing for tennis. I’m really excited to see her play.”
___
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
