Add The New York Post on Google Serena Williams made a victorious return to tennis, 1,376 days after her last professional match.
The 44-year-old Williams and doubles partner Victoria Mboko defeated third-seeded Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez 7-6 (2), 6-2 at the Queen’s Club championships on Tuesday afternoon. Routliffe and Melichar-Martinez are ranked No. 11 and No. 15 in the world in doubles, respectively.
“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.”
London’s Andy Murray Arena was packed for Williams’s return. In attendance were her husband, Alexis, alongside their two daughters, Olympia and Adira, as well as Williams’ friend Lindsey Vonn.
It was Williams’s first-ever appearance at Queen’s Club, as the tournament only recently returned to the WTA in 2025 after a 50-year absence.
“I never got to play here, it was always just the men,” said Williams, who last competed at the 2022 U.S. Open. “It felt really special to play some place so iconic.”
Both pairs had ups and downs throughout the match. Williams and the Canadian teenager led the first set 3-0, but Routliffe and Melichar-Martinez came roaring back to force a tiebreak, which they lost 2-7. The second set flew by, reminiscent of Williams’s dominance throughout her time on the tour, giving Williams her first match win since August 31, 2022.
Speaking of dominance, Williams showed off her power, a key to her game. Her first serve of the day clocked in at 113.9 miles per hour, and her serve speed peaked at an astonishing 120 mph.
“A C-minus,” Williams said at her press conference when grading her performance. “With all the elements, considering coming back on grass is probably not the easiest surface. … Grass, four years. Overall, I think it was decent.”
Discussion has been swirling on whether Williams could play at Wimbledon, where she’s won seven singles titles and seven doubles titles.
“Yeah, like I said the other day, it’s just a day at a time,” Williams said when asked after the win. “I still have a little time to decide, and they have been great about giving me that space and time to decide.”
A big part of Williams’ return was her young daughters being able to watch her play. Adira, her youngest, was born in August 2023, so Tuesday marked the first time she saw her mom play a competitive match. Williams was also asked what her daughters thought about her win.
“Adira wanted to go to the toy store and Olympia wanted to go for dinner. That’s kids for you,” she said. “They don’t care if you have broken serve or the internet, they just want to be fed on time and have new toys to play with.”
In the Queen’s Club quarterfinals, Williams and Mboko will face Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund on Thursday. Fernandez was runner-up in women’s singles at the 2021 US Open.
