Serena Williams could be surprisingly impacted by Jodie Burrage’s withdrawal from Wimbledon qualifying.
Williams has been confirmed to play singles at Wimbledon this year, after she was announced as the final wildcard for the women’s singles draw.
This will be Williams’ 22nd appearance at Wimbledon, and her first since losing in the first round in 2022.
There will now be a lot of attention on who Williams will be drawn to play against in the first round of Wimbledon, and there is now a possibility that it could be the same player who beat her four years ago.
Serena Williams could face Harmony Tan again at Wimbledon after Jodie Burrage’s withdrawal
Williams will have to wait until Friday, June 26 to discover her first round opponent, but it has now been confirmed that it could be the same player who beat her in 2022.
At the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, Williams was beaten by Harmony Tan, who went on to enjoy a breakthrough run all the way to the fourth round.
How many singles matches do you think Serena Williams will win at Wimbledon this year?
Tan has been unable to continue this form and was outside of even the qualifying draw for Wimbledon this year.
However, after British player Burrage withdrew from qualifying due to illness, Tan has been moved into the qualifying draw as the next alternate.
Tan is now three wins away from returning to the Wimbledon main draw for the first time since 2022, where she could reunite on court with Williams.
How many times has Serena Williams lost in the first round of Wimbledon?
Williams’ loss to Tan was just one of two occasions where she lost in the first round of Wimbledon.
Seven-time Wimbledon champion Williams had not lost in the first round of the grass court major in her first 19 appearances at the tournament, before suffering back-to-back losses.
Williams’ other first round defeat at Wimbledon in 2021 came under different circumstances, as she was forced to retire after just six games due to a right thigh injury, which was provoked even more when she slipped during the early stages of the match.
What do you think Serena Williams needs to do to make her comeback successful?
Now at 44 years old, Williams will be hoping to win her first singles match at Wimbledon since 2019, when she beat Barbora Strycova to reach her 11th final at The Championships.
The main draw of Wimbledon gets underway on Monday, June 29 this year, with Williams competing in both singles and doubles with her older sister Venus.
