Tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams are set to make a highly anticipated return to Wimbledon, having been granted a wildcard to participate in the women's doubles competition. The decision by the Wimbledon committee paves the way for the iconic American duo to grace the grass courts of SW19 together once more, a sight not seen since the 2022 US Open, which many believed was Serena's final professional tournament.
Serena Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion with seven of those titles secured at Wimbledon, recently made her comeback at Queen's last week. She has since continued her return to competitive play in doubles, though she and partner Karolina Muchova experienced a 6-4, 6-4 defeat to specialists Giuliana Olmos and Erin Routliffe in Berlin this week. Her sister, Venus, a five-time Wimbledon singles champion, has had a challenging singles season but did secure a doubles victory alongside Britain's Katie Boulter at the Madrid Open in April.
Interestingly, neither sister has been included in the initial list of singles wildcards, although one remaining spot for the women's singles draw is yet to be announced. Serena Williams indicated that her return was partly inspired by Venus's run to the US Open women's doubles quarter-finals last year, as well as a conversation with her daughter. When asked about a potential singles return at Wimbledon, Serena humorously remarked, "You think I'm ready for singles? I need to get to work."
The Williams sisters hold a formidable record at Wimbledon, having clinched the women's doubles title together on six occasions. Their powerful and athletic playing style transformed the sport when they emerged in the 1990s, collectively securing 30 Grand Slam singles titles and 12 Wimbledon victories between them. Their first Wimbledon doubles triumph was in 2000, with their most recent in 2016.
Other wildcard announcements include three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka and Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov for the men's singles. Notably, former British number one Dan Evans, set to retire after this season, was not granted a wildcard for the men's singles main draw. French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska received a wildcard for the women's singles, alongside six British players, including Harriet Dart and Katie Swan. Wimbledon is scheduled to begin on Monday, 29th June.
Source: Wimbledon Committee