Serena Williams during Australia Open
Serena Williams is all set for her Wimbledon comeback. The 40-year-old had not played on the Tour since an injury during her round one match at last year's Wimbledon. In fact, she is making her first appearance in singles at any tournament since she hurt her right leg.
With no activity over the past year, Williams is ranked No.1,204 in singles and wasn't among the seeded players announced by Wimbledon on Tuesday. Therefore, she could have ended up anywhere on the field and against any opponent in the first round.
The veteran tennis player will start her Wimbledon comeback by facing Harmony Tan from France. The 24-year-old is ranked 113th and owns a 2-6 career record in Grand Slam matches.
Making a return to competitive tennis after nearly a year, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion made the most of the Wimbledon warmup event. It was a treat for tennis fans as Serena and Jabeur bounced back after losing the first set 6-2 to win the second one 6-3.
The match headed into the tie-breaker where Serena and her partner won 13-11.
While the 40-year-old American's track record would merit a seeding, the All England Club now adheres strictly to the rankings in determining how it seeds players.
Williams has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, a record for the professional era. Among these, there are seven titles from the Wimbledon championships. On the other hand, her competitor Tan will be making a debut at the grass-court tournament.
The Grand Slam which is set to begin from 27th June to 10th July is one of the important Championships of Tennis.
In men's singles, the eight-time singles champion Roger Federer won't play the grass-court Grand Slam after 23 years. The 40-year-old has played every Wimbledon since the year 1999. However, he had undergone his third knee surgery in an 18-month span after his exit from last year’s Wimbledon.
(Inputs from PTI)
