Serena Williams made her first public appearance on the practice courts ahead of her return to tennis at the Queen’s Club Championships.
Williams confirmed her return to professional tennis last week, after months of speculation about the 23-time Grand Slam champion coming out of retirement.
The American will begin her grass court season at the Queen’s Club Championships, where Williams will play doubles with Victoria Mboko.
After footage of Williams practicing ahead of her first match in nearly four years was released by the tournament, former world number six Chanda Rubin has given her verdict on what she has seen.
Chanda Rubin impressed by Serena Williams practice at Queen’s
Rubin was asked about Williams’ practicing ahead of Queen’s on Tennis Channel, to which she appeared impressed by the way she was still hitting the ball.
She then suggested that Williams’ movement will be tested more when she takes to the match court, but Rubin praised her decision to start with doubles.
“When you see the pristine grass, you know Serena who has dominated for so often on these courts, you know she’s back!” said Rubin. “We’ve been hearing it, we’ve believed it, but to see it is a different story.
“And she looked good hitting, striking the ball well, the contact point, you look for all of those things on grass and we’re going to see a little more movement in the doubles. I think it’s a smart decision easing into it, but I’m sure she’s going to show her trademark intensity right from the get go.”
How excited are you to watch Serena Williams play on the WTA Tour once again? 🐐
Former top five player Jimmy Arias was also impressed by what he had seen from Williams’ practice.
“She looks fantastic!” said Arias. “The strokes look a lot like I remember Serena Williams looking (laughs).Crushing the ball, nothing has changed seemingly from what we’re seeing right now.
“Different when you play a match and there’s a little adrenaline, we will see how she handles that but I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
Jimmy Arias admits he feels for Victoria Mboko ahead of doubles matches with Serena Williams
As well as winning 23 Grand Slam titles in singles, Williams has also collected 14 major titles in women’s doubles and two in mixed.
Alison Riske-Amritraj claimed that this makes Williams the greatest of all time even more in her eyes, as she spoke of her excitement ahead of her return.
Arias has recently called Mboko a future world number one, but he admitted that he empathised with the Canadian, as she faces a lot of pressure being Williams’ doubles partner for her first match since the 2022 US Open.
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“It’s absolutely unbelievable! She really is the GOAT in so many different ways, that just being to add to her résumé,” Riske-Amritraj said about Williams’ doubles achievements.
“But I think it’s so exciting to see her go up with Mboko, one of the most promising players on tour and we heard it here first, Jimmy Arias called her to win a Grand Slam in the next few years, so it’s coming!”
Arias added, “It’s coming, although I think I feel for Vicky a little bit because the pressure is on when you’re playing with Serena Williams in doubles and I’m sure she’ll handle it just fine.”
Williams will make her return alongside Mboko at the Queen’s Club Championships next week, which gets underway on Monday, June 8.
