Williams Returns to Wimbledon Singles After Four-Year Hiatus
Serena Williams, a seven-time Wimbledon singles champion, will face 20-year-old Maya Joint in the first round of the grass-court Grand Slam, marking her first singles match at the tournament in nearly four years. The 44-year-old American accepted a wild-card entry to compete at the All England Club, where she will also play doubles with her older sister Venus, who turned 46 last week.
Opponent Profile: Maya Joint
Joint was born in Michigan, like Williams, but represents Australia through her father. She is currently ranked No. 53 in the world and made her Wimbledon debut in 2025, losing in the first round to Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-2. Joint won the grass-court Eastbourne Open last year, one of her two WTA tour-level singles titles. The age gap between the two players is 24 years.
Williams' Comeback Trail
Williams has not played a singles match since a third-round loss to Ajla Tomljanovic at the 2022 U.S. Open. At the time, she said she preferred the term "evolving" rather than "retiring" from tennis. Her second daughter was born in 2023. Her most recent Wimbledon appearance was in 2022, when she lost in the opening round to then-115th-ranked Harmony Tan. The comeback began with two doubles warmup matches before the All England Club announced on Sunday that Serena would play singles. The draw was conducted on Friday.
Potential Path in the Draw
If Williams beats Joint on Tuesday, she could face rising Filipino star Alexandra Eala, seeded 29th, in the second round. A potential third-round meeting with defending champion Iga Swiatek looms. Swiatek opens against Taylor Townsend of the U.S. on Centre Court on Tuesday.
Projected Quarterfinals in Women's Singles
According to seedings, No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka would meet French Open champion Mirra Andreeva; No. 2 Elena Rybakina, the 2022 champion, would face 2025 runner-up Amanda Anisimova; Swiatek, the No. 3 seed, would play Elina Svitolina; and No. 4 Jessica Pegula would meet Coco Gauff.
Men's Draw Highlights
On the men's side, No. 1 Jannik Sinner begins his Wimbledon title defense against Miomir Kecmanovic on Centre Court on Monday. Sinner and Novak Djokovic, the No. 7 seed, are in the same half and could meet in the semifinals. Sinner underwent checks after his French Open meltdown, where he lost in the second round amid a heat wave in Paris, and said he felt physically good after an exhibition match this week in London, which also experienced high temperatures. Djokovic, a seven-time champion, will play Wu Yibing of China and could meet third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarterfinals. Two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz, who lost to Sinner in the 2025 final, will miss this year's tournament due to a wrist injury. Wimbledon starts on Monday.
Williams Sisters in Doubles
Serena and Venus Williams are wild-card entries in the women's doubles and will play their first-round match against Colombia's Camila Osorio and Solana Sierra of Argentina. The sisters have won 14 Grand Slam titles together in doubles, including six at Wimbledon, with their first two titles at the All England Club in 2000 and 2002 coming as wild cards.
