2 min readJun 16, 2026 05:11 PM IST
After an absence of 4 years, American icon Serena Williams will return to the grand stage of the Wimbledon this year. The 44-year-old who has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, was given a wildcard entry for the women’s doubles and will be partnering with older sister Venus. Williams has won seven Wimbledon singles titles and doubles titles alongside Venus.
Serena’s last match at Wimbledon was in 2022 when she also needed a wildcard and lost to Harmony Tan in the first round. Wildcards are handed to players whose ranking does not allow them automatic entry and are usually reserved for high-profile players returning from injury or those from the home nation.
Earlier this month, Serena had made a comeback to professional tennis at the Queen’s Club Championships, playing doubles with Canadian Victoria Mboko. That partnership was cut short prematurely after Mboko suffered a knee injury that ruled her out of Wimbledon.
Williams and Mboko had won their opening doubles match against third-seeded duo Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe 7-6 (2), 6-2.
But her partner went down with injury while playing a singles match against Karolina Pliskova in the same event. While trying to return a shot in the second set against Pliskova, Mboko slipped behind the baseline and immediately grabbed her left knee. She told a physiotherapist there was “no stability” in it. She retired from the match and later pulled out of the doubles event.
Among those receiving wildcards on the men’s side were three-times Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who is set to retire at the end of the season, and former Wimbledon semi-finalist Grigor Dimitrov.
Organisers have two more men’s singles slots to fill, with 2021 runner-up Matteo Berrettini in the reckoning alongside Dan Evans, Nick Kyrgios and Gael Monfils.
French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska of Poland was among the beneficiaries on the women’s singles side, where one slot remains to be filled. A second batch of wildcards is expected this week.
In doubles, Katie Boulter and fellow Briton Heather Watson were given a wildcard as a pair.
(With agency inputs)
