Serena Williams made a victorious comeback on Tuesday, after four years away from competitive, professional tennis. It may be no accident that the Queen of tennis chose to return to the grass of the Queen’s tournament (the HSBC Championships) in London to play doubles, where she and young rising Canadian star Victoria Mboko won their first round match in straight sets (7-6 6-2).
I was there to watch the greatest of all time (the GOAT) and mother of two return. Anticipation was in the air at Queen’s from morning. By the time she came on to court late in the afternoon with Mboko, against top doubles players Kiwi Erin Routliffe and American Nicole Melichar-Martinez, the crowd was close to full capacity.
Mboko provided the solid foundation for the doubles pairing, giving Williams time to find her rhythm – which she did early in the second set. She reminded the crowd why she is widely considered the best women’s server of all time, before showcasing her intimidating ground strokes late in the second set. Williams and Mboko now move into the quarterfinals of the Queen’s championships, one of the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments.
The all-women’s tournament seems to celebrate women more widely. The tournament director is a woman (former British player Laura Robson) and the ball-kids are sourced from two local girls’ high schools.
Williams’ return was announced just over a week ago, after some months of speculation. She retired in 2022 before giving birth to second daughter Adira in 2023. The birth of elder daughter Olympia was particularly difficult – Williams later shared that she almost died during Olympia’s birth.
Prior to this comeback, the most recent headlines involving Williams were about the promotion of the weightloss drug GLP-1. She accessed the drug through the telehealth company Ro, for which her husband Alexis Ohanian is an early investor and Board Director. This received a mixed reception, not only because of her husband’s association with the product but also disappointment for women who, in the past, could relate to her athletic body shape. If one of the greatest athletes of all time has now decided to take a weightloss drug, where does it leave the rest of us?
As her comeback continues, so will the GLP-1 debate. The above developments, however, should not take away from her impressive tennis legacy (which includes 23 singles and 14 doubles Grand Slams). With a career spanning more than twenty years at the very top of the game, Serena Williams has been inspiring to more than one generation of women and girls. Her return at 44, and as a mother, should be no less inspiring.
Her future plans are unknown, but we can likely expect to see her in more tournaments – whether singles or doubles – this grasscourt season.