Serena Williams is preparing for her first Wimbledon singles match in nearly four years, facing 20-year-old Maya Joint on Tuesday, June 30. At 44, she is also set to return to grass with Venus in doubles, after earlier wins at Queen’s Club that were cut short
Serena Williams stepped in front of the media on Sunday, June 28, carrying the kind of focus that comes from waiting nearly four years to be back on a Grand Slam court.
At 44, she is set to return to Wimbledon for singles competition for the first time since the 2022 U.S. Open. Her first-round singles match will come against 20-year-old Maya Joint, with the tournament scheduled for Tuesday, June 30. The opponent is younger by decades. The stakes feel familiar anyway: grass, pressure, and a storied venue that has defined her career.
“We do have memories sometimes,” Williams said, adding, “Olympic memories in particular.”
Those memories aren’t limited to Wimbledon. Venus and Serena have teamed up for three Olympic gold medals in women’s doubles. with titles in Sydney (2000). Beijing (2008). and London (2012). Serena also won gold in women’s singles at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in 2012—another thread tying her current return to the place where she’s previously reached the top.
This time, even the familiar courts come with a new mental calculus. “In general, my expectations are definitely different for the first time in my career,” the seven-time Wimbledon singles champion said. “Not that I never enjoyed it before because I wouldn’t be here today, but I’m gonna enjoy being out there.”.
Alongside her singles comeback, Williams will compete in doubles with her older sister Venus, a reunion that shifts the week from solitary endurance to shared history. Williams’ Wimbledon doubles return comes after she and Venus were wild card entries for the tournament.
Her tune-up featured both promise and interruption. Williams returned to competitive tennis at the Queen’s Club, where she and partner Victoria Mboko won their first-round match. But they withdrew after Mboko injured her knee during a singles match.
Before reuniting with Venus for Wimbledon, Williams partnered with Karolina Muchova at the Berlin Open, then later joined her sister again for the grass-court stretch that leads into Wimbledon.
The first test of the singles draw is scheduled with particular timing: Williams will meet Joint—24 years younger—in the first round on Tuesday, June 30.
The week, then, is built on two comebacks at once: a singles return after nearly four years away from Grand Slam competition, and a doubles return rooted in an enduring partnership that has already delivered the highest moments on the biggest stages.
Serena Williams Wimbledon Maya Joint Venus Williams doubles Queen's Club Victoria Mboko Karolina Muchova Berlin Open Wimbledon 2026