Serena Williams discusses comeback and reunion with Venus at Wimbledon

Serena Williams sat down with ESPN’s Malika Andrews to talk through a comeback built less on expectation than on control, returning to professional tennis at 44 after nearly four years away. Her first match back came at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club in London, where she entered doubles as a wild card after her last match at the 2022 US Open.

Williams framed the return on her own terms. ESPN reported that she said she did not need to win and was unsure whether she would play singles again, a sharp reset for a player whose career has long been measured by titles and rankings. Instead of an all-or-nothing return, the first step was doubles, with Serena and Venus Williams originally planning to play together again.

Wimbledon then widened that comeback. The All England Club granted Serena Williams a wild card into the ladies’ singles draw and a doubles wild card with Venus, putting the sisters back together in competitive play for the first time since the 2022 US Open. Williams was also said to want her daughters, Olympia and Adira, to see her compete, underscoring how the comeback carried personal weight well beyond the scoreboard.

The competitive reality remains formidable. Serena Williams and Venus Williams have won a combined 21 Wimbledon titles across singles and doubles, and the sisters lifted the Wimbledon women’s doubles trophy six times. Their last doubles title together at Wimbledon came a decade ago, and their last Grand Slam doubles match before this return ended in a straight-sets loss to Lucie Hradecká and Linda Nosková at the 2022 US Open in Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City.

Williams had already tested the waters before arriving at Wimbledon. At Queen’s Club, she teamed with Victoria Mboko and beat the No. 3 seeds Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez, a reminder that even a comeback built around flexibility still has to survive the pressure of elite match play.

Wimbledon 2026 began Monday, June 29, with women’s singles and men’s singles scheduled across the first two days before doubles began later in the week. For Williams, the return is now defined by access, fitness and family as much as by trophies, with the reunion with Venus carrying its own place in the sport’s midlife elite.