Serena Williams has been keeping an eye on women’s tennis in the four years she has spent away from the WTA Tour.
Williams is making her singles comeback at Wimbledon, having not played any singles match since the 2022 US Open.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion will play Maya Joint in her first round match, with the potential of Williams facing Alexandra Eala in the second round.
Ahead of her return to Centre Court, Williams spoke in her pre-tournament press conference, where she was asked a number of questions about her time away from the WTA Tour.
Serena Williams enjoys watching Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva
Although Williams has not been on the match court in the last four years, she has been keeping up with tennis, predominantly at the Grand Slams.
She confirmed this when speaking to press, with Williams naming Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva as three players she enjoys watching.
“You know, there’s so many players,” said Williams. “First part of the question is, yes, I did follow. Not every single match and every single tournament. Mostly just Grand Slams.
“Seeing Sabalenka just kind of do so well in so many of those Grand Slams has always been really cool to watch her. I love her intensity out there. But she was around when I was around, so that doesn’t quite answer the question. Yeah, so…
“Obviously watching Coco who wasn’t super around, but I love watching her.”
Williams then added before answering the next question, “And Mirra Andreeva. I like watching her a lot (smiling).”
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Andreeva had actually admitted she did not want to face Williams at Wimbledon this year, and these comments were relayed to the 44-year-old.
Williams admitted that she was not surprised by this, and continued to praise Roland Garros champion Andreeva.
“Respectfully, it’s not surprising simply because I think anyone that’s done, it’s like the big four coming back, I mean, Novak [Djokovic] is still here, but no one would want to play them in their first round,” said Williams. “I can’t think of anyone that would want to do that.
“I just think that’s an immense amount of respect, which is yet another reason why I love her [Andreeva].
“Also just natural feelings. Like, especially at a Grand Slam, you want to warm up, you want to play someone. No-one knows how my game may or may not have evolved, what to expect, don’t know much. Those type of opponents are always very difficult to play. I think that has also a lot of things to do with it.”
Serena Williams admits nerves ahead of first singles match at Wimbledon
While many players might feel pressure facing someone like Williams, she is also not immune to that feeling herself.
Williams admitted that she expects to feel nervous when stepping back on the singles court for her match against Joint.
“I expect to be nervous,” confessed Williams. “I was also nervous every single match I ever played in my life.
“I think that showed the passion and the love and the care, that I cared about my job, whether it was the first round or the second round or the finals. I’ve always had some nerves. But then I just dust ’em off, then I move on. I definitely expect to have those same feelings.”
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Williams will play 20-year-old Australian Joint on Tuesday, June 30, with the match confirmed to be scheduled third on Centre Court.
The last time that Williams won a match at Wimbledon was in 2019, when she beat Barbora Strycova to reach her 11th final at SW19.
