Serena Williams is set for a remarkable comeback to singles at this year’s Wimbledon after receiving the tournament’s final wildcard from the All England Club.
The seven-time singles champion is already guaranteed to return to the championships for the first time in four years, having accepted a doubles wildcard alongside her sister, Venus.
“This is not a drill,” Wimbledon posted on its Instagram account, underlining the significance of the decision.
Quick facts
- Serena Williams has been awarded the final Wimbledon wildcard for singles.
- Wimbledon’s tournament begins on June 29.
- The 44-year-old mother of two will play singles after previously returning via a doubles wildcard with Venus.
- Her most recent Wimbledon singles appearance came in 2022, when she entered as a wildcard and lost in the first round to Harmony Tan.
The news of Williams stepping back into singles is expected to deliver a major storyline for the Grand Slam, which starts on June 29. The 44-year-old is widely viewed as the greatest women’s tennis player of all time.
This month, Williams returned to match action after a four-year gap in singles at the Queen’s Club championships, competing in doubles with Canada’s Victoria Mboko. She has also played doubles in Berlin this week, keeping her presence on tour while building toward Wimbledon.
Williams’ last Wimbledon singles match before this latest wildcard was in 2022, when she again entered via wild card and was beaten in the first round by Harmony Tan.
After that year’s U.S. Open, Williams said she would “evolve away from tennis,” while never making an official retirement. Wildcards are awarded by tournament organisers to players who do not have rankings that automatically secure entry, and they are often used for home players, celebrated career records, or well-known figures returning from setbacks.
Williams first appeared at Wimbledon in 1998, reaching the singles third round. She won the singles title for the first time in 2002, defeating her older sister Venus in the final, before establishing herself as the dominant force in women’s tennis.
Across her career, Williams spent a combined total of 319 weeks as the WTA world No. 1. She added singles championships at Wimbledon in 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016, and she also captured six doubles titles at the grass-court major with Venus.
