Serena returns: Williams makes a winning comeback in doubles at Queen’s Club

LONDON, June 10: After nearly four years away from professional tennis, Serena Williams showed she still has plenty of power to her game as she made a winning return at Queen’s Club on Tuesday.
The 44-year-old Williams hit service winners of up to 120 mph and some ferocious winners as she teamed up with 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko to win their opening doubles match at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament.
Williams and Mboko beat third-seeded duo Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe 7-6 (2), 6-2 in Williams’ first professional match since the 2022 U.S. Open.
They next face Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund in the quarterfinals.
As if to punctuate that she’s back, Williams served out the first-round match with two aces followed by a service winner.
“It was so fun. I had so much fun playing with Victoria,” Williams said in an on-court interview. “We’ve never played together but it just felt so natural playing with her.” Later, though, Williams gave herself a modest grade in her post-match news conference.
“A C-minus,” Williams said, before cutting herself some slack. “With all the elements, considering coming back on grass is probably not the easiest surface. … Grass, four years. Overall, I think it was decent.”
Perhaps more than decent, given the quality of the opposition. Routliffe is a two-time U.S. Open champion in doubles and Melichar-Martinez has made the doubles final at both Flushing Meadows and Wimbledon.
Sure, Williams’ performance was uneven, and at times it looked like she may have lost half a step. But it was clear she can still compete at a high level.
Even Williams seemed to be surprised at the quality of her rapid-reaction backhand winner at 4-4 in the first set, laughing as she high-fived Mboko.
Her teenage partner was clearly impressed.The crowd loved it too, from the moment Williams stepped onto the court on a sunny but windy afternoon.
Williams received a standing ovation as she made her entrance.
It was Williams’ first appearance at Queen’s Club, which is nestled among residential blocks near Hammersmith in west London. The club, which held its first championships in 1881, did not stage a women’s tournament for more than 50 years before the WTA tour returned to the venue in 2025. (PTI)