Serena Williams returns to tennis at 44: date, tournament and all details
The 23-time Grand Slam champion will compete in doubles at the Queen's Club tournament in London alongside Victoria Mboko, four years after her last official match at the 2022 U.S. Open.
Serena Williams, during the 2022 US Open.
In a sport where most players hang up their racquets before age 35, Serena Williams is about to write a new chapter at 44. The American tennis legend, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, will return to professional competition at the Queen's Club tournament, the HSBC Championships, in London, a WTA 500 event on grass that serves as preparation for Wimbledon.
"Good news travels fast," she posted on social media, along with a video of herself on the court in an all-white Nike tennis dress and with her phone vibrating nonstop in the background.
According to multiple confirmed reports, Williams will compete in doubles alongside Canadian Victoria Mboko, 19, who is ranked No. 9 in the world in singles. The tournament starts June 8.
No official matches since 2022
Williams had not played an official match since the U.S. Open in 2022, where she was eliminated in the third round and delivered an emotional speech that many interpreted as retirement, although she never officially announced it.
The possibility of her return had been brewing for months. Williams re-entered the ITIA anti-doping testing pool in February 2026, a prerequisite to compete.
The American's 23 Grand Slam singles titles are the most by a woman in the Open era and put her second on the all-time women's list behind Margaret Court, who totaled 24.
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