Serena Williams marked her comeback to professional tennis with a victory, defeating third seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 alongside Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko at Queen's Club in London. The match represented Williams's first competitive outing since stepping away from the sport in 2022, after 1,375 days away from professional play.
The 44-year-old Williams described her return as being about "just having fun" rather than chasing wins. "I don't need to win. I've won more than most people have in their whole lives, so for me it's not important," she said. Williams emphasized that she feels no pressure to prove herself further, having already secured 23 Grand Slam singles titles during her career.
Williams chose Mboko, currently ranked ninth in singles, as her doubles partner after being impressed by her performance at the Canadian Open. She noted that Mboko "reminded me a lot of myself" because of her consistent winning mentality and drive to succeed.
For Mboko, the partnership carries special significance. The 19-year-old was only ten years old when Williams won her last Grand Slam title. "Growing up, Serena has always been my idol," Mboko said. "Seeing someone on TV versus actually talking to them in person is very different. She's really nice and very personable, very relatable."
During the match, Williams demonstrated her competitive instincts remained sharp. At a crucial moment with the score tied at 5-5, 30-30 in the first set, she served a 120mph service winner to secure the hold. The pair won the tight opening set in a tiebreak before dominating the second set.
Williams stressed that her primary motivation for returning involves her family. "It's really about my kids getting to see me play," she explained, referencing her eight-year-old daughter Olympia and two-year-old daughter Adira. She added that the summer timing was perfect since her children were not in school.
Regarding her future in tennis, Williams remained noncommittal about returning to singles competition. When asked if she planned to play singles matches, she said: "I can't say yeah, I can't say no. Right now, no." She acknowledged that playing singles would require additional training. Williams has committed to playing doubles in Berlin after Queen's, but her plans beyond that remain uncertain.
Emma Raducanu, who faced Williams in 2022 during what was then her final professional match, expressed enthusiasm about the comeback. "It's really great to see her back," Raducanu said. "She's the greatest female tennis player of all time."
The victory sets up a second-round match for Williams and Mboko as they continue their campaign at Queen's Club, the traditional grass-court warmup tournament before Wimbledon.