Tennis legend Serena Williams is set to make a highly anticipated return to Wimbledon, competing in the women's doubles alongside her sister Venus. The iconic duo has been awarded a wildcard for the prestigious tournament, which commences on 29th June, reigniting their formidable partnership after a four-year hiatus.
Serena, 44, recently began her comeback at Queen's Club last week, where she won a round in doubles with Victoria Mboko before her Canadian partner withdrew due to injury. The Williams sisters boast an impressive record at Wimbledon, having secured six doubles titles together, with their last victory in the event coming a decade ago during their most recent joint appearance.
While the focus remains on their doubles return, neither Serena nor Venus has yet received a wildcard for the women's singles competition, though one spot still remains open. Serena had previously indicated that a singles comeback was "not my journey right now" when questioned at Queen's. Her last singles appearance at Wimbledon was four years ago, where she lost in the first round to Harmony Tan, prior to her 'evolving away' from tennis later that summer at the US Open.
In other wildcard news, French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska, whose impressive run in Paris propelled her into the top 25, has been granted a seeded wildcard. For the men's singles, Grigor Dimitrov and the retiring Stan Wawrinka have also made the cut. However, former British number one Dan Evans, who announced Wimbledon would be his final tournament, appears set to go through qualifying. Evans, 36, has expressed frustration after not receiving a wildcard for the HSBC Championships at Queen's this week, having lost in the opening round of qualifying and winning just one of his six matches this season, leading to a drop to 244th in the rankings.
A host of British talent has also been awarded wildcards across the competitions. In the women's singles, Harriet Dart, Katie Swan, debutante Alicia Dudeney, and teenage trio Mika Stojsavljevic, Mimi Xu, and Hannah Klugman will represent the home contingent. For the men's singles, Jacob Fearnley, Arthur Fery, Jack Pinnington Jones, and Toby Samuel have received wildcards, with two spots still to be announced. Oliver Tarvet, who reached the second round last year, will need to navigate qualifying once more.
Dan Evans and Nick Kyrgios have both been granted wildcards into the men's doubles, partnering with Henry Searle and Alexander Bublik respectively.
Source: UKPulse Media Research