London (AFP) – Serena Williams was on Friday drawn to play Australia’s Maya Joint in the Wimbledon first round as the American legend returns to singles action after four years. Williams retired in 2022, but the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion made a sensational comeback by playing in the Queen’s Club and Berlin Open doubles earlier in June. The 44-year-old was given a wild card entry in the Wimbledon singles—a tournament she has won seven times.
If Williams beats world number 53 Joint, a 20-year-old who has won just one of her past 14 matches, the American could face 29th seed rising star Alexandra Eala of the Philippines in the second round. A victory in the second round would raise the possibility of a potential blockbuster third-round tie against reigning champion Iga Swiatek, who starts her title defense against American Taylor Townsend.
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Williams, who has been practicing at Wimbledon for the past week, last played a singles match nearly four years ago at the US Open in what had appeared to be her farewell to the sport. She said at the time she was “evolving away” from tennis. But just prior to the Wimbledon warm-up event at Queen’s this year, Williams announced her stunning return, a move motivated by a desire to play in front of her two young daughters. She has not played at Wimbledon since losing to Harmony Tan in the first round in 2022. Her last Grand Slam match was the US Open third-round defeat against Ajla Tomljanovic that seemed to have brought the curtain down on her astonishing career.
It remains to be seen if Williams can cope with the physical demands of singles competition after so long away from the sport. She looked solid in her two doubles matches at Queen’s and Berlin, winning one in London with Victoria Mboko and losing her opening tie with Karolina Muchova in Germany. But Williams has not won a Grand Slam crown since the 2017 Australian Open, with her last major final appearance ending in defeat at the 2019 US Open. Williams is also playing in the doubles at Wimbledon with her sister Venus. The pair have won the All England Club doubles six times together.
In the men’s singles draw on Friday, defending champion Jannik Sinner was pitted against Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic. The Italian world number one has not played since suffering a shock defeat against Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the French Open second round in May. Sinner, a four-time Grand Slam champion, is looking to win Wimbledon for the second time, with his main rival Carlos Alcaraz absent as he continues to recover from a wrist injury.
Novak Djokovic starts his latest bid for a record 25th Grand Slam title against China’s Wu Yibing. The 39-year-old Serb has won Wimbledon seven times, but he has not triumphed there since 2022. Djokovic earned his most recent Grand Slam crown at the 2023 US Open, with his last two major finals ending in defeat against Alcaraz at Wimbledon in 2024 and the Australia Open this year. Second seeded Alexander Zverev, who won the French Open in June, faces Alexander Blockx in the first round.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, 41, takes on Matteo Berrettini in his final Wimbledon campaign. Women’s top seed Aryna Sabalenka begins her bid for a first Wimbledon title against Serbia’s Teodora Kostovic. Former US Open champion Emma Raducanu is due to start against Antonia Ruzic, but fitness doubts surround the British 30th seed. Raducanu did not turn up for her practice session on Thursday having reportedly been seen wearing a protective boot.
© 2024 AFP
