It was two days before Wimbledon, and Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal were training with the steeples of the St. Mary’s Church in the background.
As they both stretched in the sunlight, Serena Williams stole the limelight in the main pressroom.
Although this will be Williams’ 21st Wimbledon, it will not be an event not like any other. At the age of 40, she’s returning to the All-England Club after not competing in a match since she tore her right hamstring a year ago.
People have asked Williams how much the desire to create positive memories at Wimbledon pushed her during her recovery.
“It was always something, since the match ended, that was always on my mind,” she said. “So it was a tremendous amount of motivation.”
Williams has won seven Wimbledon singles titles on Center Court, which is nearly 100 years old and remains the most atmospheric venue in the professional game.
Last year, though, it was all about heartbreak and disappointment for Williams. She was in tears when she attempted to continue after her injury but couldn’t. She was in tears again when she was forced to quit her match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
“I didn’t retire,” she said recently. “I had no plans, to be honest. I just didn’t know when I would come back. I didn’t know how I would come back. Obviously, Wimbledon is such a great place to be, and it just kind of worked out.”
It has taken her a year to make her comeback after she withdrew from three consecutive Grand Slam events, which led to rumors about whether she planned to keep playing tennis at all.
Since her previous visit to the All-England Club, she has balanced parenthood with business ventures, including Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm that focuses on investing in companies founded by people from historically underrepresented backgrounds.
Williams has also called it quits with Patrick Mouratoglou, the high-profile Frenchman who had been her coach for the past ten years. He is currently working with Simona Halep, who defeated Williams at the 2019 Wimbledon Finals.
She is now coached by Eric Hechtman, who is a former University of Miami tennis player and the longtime director of tennis at the Royal Palm Tennis Club in Miami. He has known both Williams and her older sister Venus for nearly 15 years and has been coaching Venus since 2019.
According to Hechtman, the decision to begin coaching Serena Williams was made with Venus’s blessing. Although this is his first tournament with Serena, he clearly understands the goal is not simply to make an appearance and improve from last year.
Williams has been vague about politics in recent interviews. Many famous female athletes, such as soccer star Megan Rapinoe and track star Allyson Felix, have voiced their opinions against the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Williams has decided to avoid that topic. It is unclear why Williams decided to remain silent. She is a Jehovah’s Witness, and belongs to a religious faith whose members believe that the Bible teaches them to remain neutral on political issues.
“I’m obviously disappointed about the decision,” said Coco Gauff, an 18-year-old American tennis star who made an appearance later that day. “I feel like we’re almost going backwards.”
Williams also declined to comment on Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian competitors this year due to the conflict in Ukraine. Sasnovich, the Belarussian who challenged Williams on Centre Court last year, is among those who have been barred.
“I’m going to step away from that,” Williams said when asked about the issue.
Williams’ first-round match against France’s 113th-ranked Harmony Tan is set for Tuesday, most likely on Center Court. Despite the fact that Williams’ ranking, which was formerly No. 1, has dropped into quadruple digits, she will be the favorite.
“I can only tell you that I’m here,” she said. “Who knows where I’ll pop up next? You’ve just got to be ready.”
As they both stretched in the sunlight, Serena Williams stole the limelight in the main pressroom.
Although this will be Williams’ 21st Wimbledon, it will not be an event not like any other. At the age of 40, she’s returning to the All-England Club after not competing in a match since she tore her right hamstring a year ago.
People have asked Williams how much the desire to create positive memories at Wimbledon pushed her during her recovery.
“It was always something, since the match ended, that was always on my mind,” she said. “So it was a tremendous amount of motivation.”
Williams has won seven Wimbledon singles titles on Center Court, which is nearly 100 years old and remains the most atmospheric venue in the professional game.
Last year, though, it was all about heartbreak and disappointment for Williams. She was in tears when she attempted to continue after her injury but couldn’t. She was in tears again when she was forced to quit her match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
“I didn’t retire,” she said recently. “I had no plans, to be honest. I just didn’t know when I would come back. I didn’t know how I would come back. Obviously, Wimbledon is such a great place to be, and it just kind of worked out.”
It has taken her a year to make her comeback after she withdrew from three consecutive Grand Slam events, which led to rumors about whether she planned to keep playing tennis at all.
Since her previous visit to the All-England Club, she has balanced parenthood with business ventures, including Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm that focuses on investing in companies founded by people from historically underrepresented backgrounds.
Williams has also called it quits with Patrick Mouratoglou, the high-profile Frenchman who had been her coach for the past ten years. He is currently working with Simona Halep, who defeated Williams at the 2019 Wimbledon Finals.
She is now coached by Eric Hechtman, who is a former University of Miami tennis player and the longtime director of tennis at the Royal Palm Tennis Club in Miami. He has known both Williams and her older sister Venus for nearly 15 years and has been coaching Venus since 2019.
According to Hechtman, the decision to begin coaching Serena Williams was made with Venus’s blessing. Although this is his first tournament with Serena, he clearly understands the goal is not simply to make an appearance and improve from last year.
Williams has been vague about politics in recent interviews. Many famous female athletes, such as soccer star Megan Rapinoe and track star Allyson Felix, have voiced their opinions against the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Williams has decided to avoid that topic. It is unclear why Williams decided to remain silent. She is a Jehovah’s Witness, and belongs to a religious faith whose members believe that the Bible teaches them to remain neutral on political issues.
“I’m obviously disappointed about the decision,” said Coco Gauff, an 18-year-old American tennis star who made an appearance later that day. “I feel like we’re almost going backwards.”
Williams also declined to comment on Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian competitors this year due to the conflict in Ukraine. Sasnovich, the Belarussian who challenged Williams on Centre Court last year, is among those who have been barred.
“I’m going to step away from that,” Williams said when asked about the issue.
Williams’ first-round match against France’s 113th-ranked Harmony Tan is set for Tuesday, most likely on Center Court. Despite the fact that Williams’ ranking, which was formerly No. 1, has dropped into quadruple digits, she will be the favorite.
“I can only tell you that I’m here,” she said. “Who knows where I’ll pop up next? You’ve just got to be ready.”
