06/30/26 05:45:00
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06/30 13:51 CDT Serena Williams begins Wimbledon comeback on Centre Court in
her return to singles
Serena Williams begins Wimbledon comeback on Centre Court in her return to
singles
By MATTIAS KARN
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) --- Serena Williams is back on Wimbledon's Centre Court for her
first singles match in nearly four years.
The 44-year-old Williams was given a standing ovation Tuesday as she walked
onto the grass court where she won seven of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles.
Several supporters held up signs with messages like "Welcome Back" and one wore
a T-shirt with the text "Unstoppable Queen."
Williams' two daughters, her husband Alexis Ohanian and sister Venus were all
in attendance. After a brief warmup under the closed roof, Williams began her
first-round match against Maya Joint by returning in the opening game. It is
her first singles match since the 2022 U.S. Open after opting to return to the
sport she dominated for so long.
After losing that first game, Williams easily held serve for 1-1 with the help
of a perfect backhand lob that drew another loud ovation.
Williams' match was the third and last on Centre Court on Day 2 of the
tournament, after defending women's champion Iga Swiatek and men's French Open
winner Alexander Zverev both won.
But the American's return was the main attraction as she went up against an
opponent less than half her age in the 20-year-old Joint.
Her return has certainly created a buzz around the All England Club, which is
without some of its usual star power after two-time men's champion Carlos
Alcaraz and home favorite Emma Raducanu both withdrew with injuries.
Williams practiced for about 50 minutes a few hours before her match, with good
friend Caroline Wozniacki --- another former No. 1 --- looking on.
"I'm very excited, it's always good to have the GOAT back," Wozniacki told The
Associated Press. "She is fun to watch, not only as a friend but also as a
tennis fan. Anytime you can have her back and playing, I think it's exciting
for the game."
After returning to play doubles at Queen's Club this month, Williams accepted
wild cards to play in both the singles and doubles tournament --- with Venus
--- at Wimbledon.
After the opening day featured wins for No. 1s Jannik Sinner and Aryna
Sabalenka, along with Novak Djokovic, Zverev and Swiatek also made it into the
second round.
In a match between hard servers, the second-seeded Zverev beat Alexander Blockx
6-4, 6-7 (8), 7-6 (5), 7-6 (0).
Swiatek, who had her father and sister watching on in the Royal Box on Centre
Court, struggled with her serve and committed nine double-faults before
overcoming Townsend 6-1, 2-6, 6-3.
No. 2 Elena Rybakina also advanced, beating Lois Boisson 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.
Fifth-seeded Alex de Minaur and No. 6 Taylor Fritz were among the early winners
in the men's bracket. But No. 4 Ben Shelton, a quarterfinalist here last year,
lost to 140th-ranked Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen in five sets, going out
6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (8), 6-2, 7-6 (9).
Fritz beat Dusan Lajovic of Serbia 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 on No. 1 Court, having
originally been set to face Jack Draper on Centre Court before the British
player withdrew with an injury.
Women's No. 6 Amanda Anisimova also advanced, along with former Wimbledon
finalist Jasmine Paolini.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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