Serena Williams kickstarts her much-anticipated comeback to tennis on Monday, when she will play in the opening round of the women’s doubles tournament at Queen’s.
The 44-year-old announced last week that she would make her return to competitive tennis this summer, nearly four years after she last played.
She lost in the third round of the 2022 US Open to Ajla Tomljanovic having previously announced that she was “evolving away” from tennis, but steered clear of the word “retirement”, leaving the door open to a return to the sport.
She sparked rumours that she was eyeing a comeback when she re-entered the International Tennis Integrity Agency’s anti-doping testing pool last August, a requirement to compete on the professional tour, and she has been cleared to compete competitively since 22 February.
The 23-time grand slam champion received a wildcard to play doubles at Queen’s, a major tournament in the lead-up to Wimbledon, and will partner Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko, who idolised Williams growing up.
The news has further fuelled speculation that she will receive either a singles or doubles wildcard to Wimbledon, where she last played in a first-round loss in 2022.
When does Serena Williams play at Queen’s?
Williams and Mboko play their first-round match on Tuesday 9 June, the second day of the doubles draw at Queen’s.
The pair have been drawn difficult opponents: they will play third seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the USA and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe.
Elsewhere Katie Boulter and Emma Raducanu will reprise their doubles partnership from last year’s tournament as they have been granted a wildcard. The British pair will play fourth seeds Storm Hunter and Zhang Shuai.
How to watch Queen’s
Viewers in the UK can follow the Queen’s tournament on BBC Two and iPlayer, with the men’s and women’s semi-finals and finals on BBC One and iPlayer.
