It means a lot to be awarded a Wimbledon main draw wildcard, and even Serena Williams will have felt honoured to receive one for this year’s Championships.
After all, it marked her first singles match in four years, honouring the hallowed turf of the All England Club with her presence.
That being said, Williams has come under fire for her conduct after losing to Maya Joint, in a match that many thought was the American’s best chance at an instant return to winning ways.
The manner of her defeat, whilst spirited, has led some to argue that she did not deserve that spot in the first place.
Laura Robson could not disagree more.
Laura Robson thinks Serena Williams fully justified her Wimbledon wildcard
Chatting to BBC Sport 5 Live, Robson was keen to defend the decision made by Wimbledon to hand Serena Williams a wildcard.
Reacting to claims that it was a poor decision, she argued: “I just totally disagree with that.”
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Robson continued: “I think enough tennis has been played over the last few weeks; not every match is world-class, 10/10 quality, point after point, living up to the hype that we try and place on some of these matches.
“A lot of times, it’s about the tension, and it’s about the atmosphere, and that’s what draws you in. It’s not always about forehands and backhands, and in that case, I think we got what we wanted out of it.
“There was drama, there was so much crowd energy, the roof was closed, it was buzzing in there. There were people supporting her from first point to last point; just from my position where I sat, there were people jumping up and celebrating every time she won points.
“How is that not a spectacle?”
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Whilst others argue that Williams proved she deserved her Wimbledon wildcard, others are not so complimentary.
In fact, Calvin Betton, who has coached Henry Patten and Harri Heliovaara to Grand Slam doubles titles, has actually criticised the decision, speaking on the Tennis Unfiltered podcast.
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He argued: “What if one of the tournaments now says we would love to have Roger Federer playing and are willing to pay him millions? What if another tournament does the same with Rafael Nadal? It could get a bit silly.
“If she was coming back and saying, ‘I’m having a run at this, my intention is to get back to the top of the rankings and I want to see how well I can do’, then I would be much more sympathetic to it and I would even back it.
“But we’re giving a wildcard to someone who’s not seriously trying to compete at tennis anymore and instead it’s purely for promotional reasons.
“This is my biggest problem with it. We keep hearing that she wants to come back and win, but she doesn’t want to win enough to stay around.”
