Serena Williams returns to tennis at 44 for Queen’s

Serena Williams, 44, is returning to pro tennis nearly four years after her last match at the 2022 U.S. Open. The WTA says she will play doubles at London’s Queen’s Club on a wild card, a move that is reigniting questions about whether she could also compete a

Paris — Serena Williams’s comeback didn’t begin with a press conference. It started with the sound of her phone ringing.

At age 44. Williams has accepted a wild-card invitation to play doubles at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament in London. the WTA Tour announced Monday. The tournament begins next Monday. Williams also posted to social media with the caption. “Guess everybody heard the news.” In the video. her phone rings as she says. “I got to change my number.” The WTA said Williams will play “with a partner to be announced in due course.”.

The decision to return on grass immediately stirred speculation about a second stage: Wimbledon, which starts June 28. Williams has won seven singles titles at the All England Club.

“Queen’s Club feels like the perfect place to begin this next chapter,” Williams said in a statement. “Grass has given me some of the most meaningful moments of my career and I’m excited to be back competing on one of the sport’s most iconic stages.”

Williams has not competed since bidding farewell at the 2022 U.S. Open. At the time, she said she didn’t want to use the word “retiring” and instead declared that she was “evolving” away from tennis.

Her return also carries a formal milestone. Williams became eligible to compete in February after re-registering with tennis’ mandatory anti-doping program six months earlier, described as the first step toward a comeback.

Martina Navratilova, who returned as the previous oldest former No. 1 at 43 years, 10 months, said Serena “brought the game to another level and it is incredible for the sport that she’s pushing the boundaries and coming back.”

Naomi Osaka, whose 2018 U.S. Open final win over Williams delivered her first major title, said she is excited to see Williams on tour again. “It will bring people to watch tennis,” Osaka said Thursday at the French Open. “I’m going to be tuned into the first match, for sure. I think a lot of people are. Everyone knows Serena and Venus were my role models growing up. so it’s going to be cool to see her on the grounds again.”.

For younger players, the prospect carries something personal. Coco Gauff, the defending French Open champion, said in Paris: “One of my biggest regrets was not being able to play her,” adding, “It would be cool for this sport to have a legend back playing.”

Eighteen-year-old Iva Jovic said she was thrilled simply to see Williams in person. “I have never seen Serena in real life,” Jovic said. “Obviously I grew up watching her. In my entire childhood she was dominating tennis, so it’s going to be incredible.”

Madison Keys sounded equally direct. “Serena Williams playing tennis is only good for tennis. Let’s be real. We all want to watch Serena play tennis.” Keys continued: “I mean, you literally get to watch history every single time she takes the court,” adding, “So why not watch more?”

Even as the excitement builds, practical questions hover around timing and physical readiness. Former No. 1 Lindsay Davenport. speaking at Roland Garros. said Williams’s goal “has always been to be the best.” Davenport added that Williams’s return is likely driven by a belief she can “make an impact immediately. ” though she cautioned that “it’s naive to expect right off the bat she’s going to be winning tournaments.”.

Davenport also discussed practice reports. She said she knows that some current women’s players went down to Florida to practice with Williams recently. “I don’t think anyone’s admitted to that, but I do know that some of them were,” Davenport said. “So I think she has kind of a handle on where the level is. But I don’t know if she’s been playing a two-hour singles match, right?. We’ll have to see how she can handle that physically.”.

Williams has offered a window into her routine in recent weeks. She posted a video on Instagram showing herself training on a hard court with her daughter, saying, “Rumor has it … I got a new trainer.” Her second daughter was born in 2023.

Her sister, Venus, is still playing occasionally at 45.

In doubles, the comeback may feel more natural to some observers. John McEnroe said Williams isn’t “coming back not to win” and suggested she could play Wimbledon. “She’s not getting any younger but she’s Serena Williams so I bet you she would tell me about wanting to win the whole damn thing. ” McEnroe said in Paris.

McEnroe. who returned to the tour at 47 after 12 years of retirement and won a tour-level doubles tournament with Jonas Bjorkman. said he believes Williams could succeed in doubles. “Physically I still had it for doubles. so she definitely could still have it for doubles. there’s no question about that. She could win anything (in doubles),” McEnroe said. “The singles is more difficult. so we’ll have to wait and see what she decides to do. maybe she’s waiting to the (U.S.) Open. I’m not really sure what the plan is. She hasn’t called me to tell me the plan.”.

The setting also has its own history. Queen’s Club has reassembled the modern women’s game in recent years: a women’s tournament rejoined the men’s competition at Queen’s last year after an absence of more than 50 years. Williams will make her debut at the historic grass-court tournament.

Laura Robson, Queen’s tournament director, framed the moment as more than a schedule item. “Women’s tennis made a historic return to the Queen’s Club last year. and now we have an icon of the game stepping back on to court at this prestigious venue. ” Robson said. “It’s very exciting for the tournament and the fans.”.

Back on the grass and back in play, Williams’s return is turning into something the sport doesn’t get often anymore: a landmark comeback that reaches beyond rankings, into memory—and into the simple question of who gets to see her next time she takes the court.

Serena Williams Queen’s Club WTA Wimbledon doubles wild card grass courts anti-doping program Naomi Osaka Coco Gauff Madison Keys