Serena Williams returns at Wimbledon with family cheering

Serena Williams returned to Wimbledon for the first time in four years on Tuesday, facing World No 87 Maya Joint in the first round with husband Alexis Ohanian and their daughters watching. The 44-year-old, a seven-time champion, stepped onto Centre Court afte

Serena Williams walked out to Centre Court at Wimbledon on Tuesday with pale pink headphones in place and her focus locked. For a moment, the noise of SW19 didn’t matter—because her comeback wasn’t about the stadium. It was about the people in her box.

Inside the iconic ground. the applause rolled out as she was introduced. loud enough that the moment couldn’t be missed when she claimed the first point on her opponent’s serve. The crowd cheered like it already knew how this story would feel: Williams was back. Maya Joint. the World No 87. was making her stand against a seven-time Wimbledon champion who hadn’t played singles at SW19 for four years.

Williams’ family framed the scene. Her husband Alexis Ohanian sat in the players’ box alongside their two daughters. Adira. two. watched the match from Centre Court in defiance of Wimbledon’s traditional age rule that requires children to be five and above to attend show courts. Olympia, eight, was also there. The tournament made an exception. and it came in a week that also brought Williams’ sister Venus and her new brother-in-law. Italian actor Andrea Preti. to Wimbledon as well.

The family presence wasn’t a side note. It was the first thing that made the comeback feel human—because for Williams, stepping back into singles after stepping away following the 2022 US Open has been as much about timing and responsibility as it has been about tennis.

This first-round clash marked her return to SW19 for the first time in four years and her first singles action there for the first time since she publicly stepped away from the sport after the 2022 US Open. In the time since. Williams has welcomed her second daughter. Adira. with Ohanian. and Ohanian was in the box to cheer her on as Wimbledon made room for the youngest member of the family.

Williams had already started rebuilding her grass-court story earlier than Wimbledon. Her comeback to competitive tennis began at the Queen’s Club’s HSBC Championships. where she won a round before being forced out by an injury to her partner. Victoria Mboko. She had previously hinted at returning to the grass courts after beginning her competitive comeback in doubles alongside Venus.

Those earlier matches set up what many would be watching now: whether the veteran still has what made her dominant. But the attention around her comeback didn’t stay on her footwork alone. One detail has followed her closely—whether Williams has continued using GLP-1 jabs managed by telehealth company Ro. which she became a vocal paid spokesperson for last year.

Her husband Alexis Ohanian sits on the company’s board and was an early investor. A Super Bowl advert for the brand. featuring Williams. ran for its Zepbound tirzepatide jab—also marketed under the name Mounjaro. Williams has previously said she lost close to two and a half stone, or 34 pounds (15kg), using the drug. She also described her post-birth weight-loss challenge as “the one opponent (she) couldn’t beat. ” after the birth of her two children.

Still, whether she continues to use GLP-1s remains unclear. Her publicist declined to comment when asked by the Atlantic about whether Williams has continued to use the drug. The question sits in a wider spotlight because GLP-1s are not banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). yet they are part of an ongoing investigation into whether they might be classed as performance-enhancing in the future.

WADA’s own timeline adds to the pressure around the debate. The study into GLP-1s was extended in 2026. WADA’s statement shared with the Athletic in June said the WADA List Expert Advisory Group discussed the status of GLP-1s and other substances of the same class. It also said semaglutide and tirzepatide were added to the Monitoring Program to track patterns of use in sports in and out of competition. The Monitoring Program includes substances not on the Prohibited List. but that WADA wants monitored to detect potential patterns of misuse in sport.

Before Williams could announce her comeback, she had to return to the anti-doping testing pool. On Sunday, when asked about returning to that pool, she took aim at the logistics. Williams described the system as “grueling.” She said the rules have changed and that she didn’t know some of them. She pointed out that missing a test outside of her window still counts as a missed test. adding: “I’m like. I guess I can’t go pick up my kids.”.

She called the situation “unprofessional” and said she thinks the rules are necessary. but also argued that if she wants to go places outside her window. she should be able to do so without it counting as a missed test. Williams said: “It’s like I could be in so many different cities so many different times.” She also highlighted the burden of player requirements under the International Tennis Integrity Agency to provide daily “whereabouts” for no-notice testing. describing it as “unreasonable.”.

All of that sits alongside the fact that tennis has its own history with weight-loss medication. At last year’s Canadian Open, semaglutide Ozempic had a surprising sponsor presence.

Even as debate continues off court. Williams’ comeback has already arrived in the most visible way possible: on Centre Court. with her headphones on and her family watching. Later this week. Venus and Williams are also set to team up in the doubles draw. where they have found formidable success in the past. winning six times.

The crowd’s reaction on Tuesday was immediate. Williams faced Maya Joint in the first round. and while the match itself carried the usual tension of a Grand Slam opener. the bigger feeling was clear enough without any commentary: after four years away from Wimbledon singles. her return was not tentative. It was loud, personal, and very much in motion.

Serena Williams Wimbledon Maya Joint Alexis Ohanian Olympia Williams Adira Williams Venus Williams GLP-1 Ro Zepbound Mounjaro WADA International Tennis Integrity Agency whereabout testing Queen's Club HSBC Championships