For more than two hours, Serena Williams didn’t look like somebody playing her first singles match in four years.
Williams roared, fist pumped and smacked two serves faster than 120 miles per hour.
Ultimately, 87th-ranked Australian Maya Joint, who is 24 years younger than Williams, outlasted the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 in the spotlight Wimbledon first-round match.
“It was really great to be back at Wimbledon,” Williams said in a statement, according to media on site. “I never expected to be here. The atmosphere was amazing. Walking out was amazing. I definitely relished it and missed it and enjoyed the moment more than anything.”
Centre Court rises for @serenawilliams 🫶#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/O3XRkjQ4cv
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 30, 2026
In the third set, the 44-year-old Williams had a game point to go up 3-1. Then Joint rallied, taking four consecutive games before serving out the match.
In the second set, Williams came back from a break down twice, then saved a match point in the tiebreak.
SERENA FIGHTS BACK TO WIN THE SECOND SET 💥
— ESPN (@espn) June 30, 2026
Third and final set on ESPN and the ESPN App 🍿 pic.twitter.com/BmKcn3B6gO
From 3-all in the first set, Joint won five consecutive games to break open the match under the Centre Court roof.
“I didn’t get much sleep last night,” Joint said. “I was up ‘til, like, 2 a.m. just thinking about it. Walking out, I forgot the warm-up. I don’t know what happened. My legs weren’t moving. I really don’t know how I got a pretty good start in the match. I mean, she has such an aura. She’s such a legend, and this court has so many huge names that have played on it. I’ve been dreaming about this moment since I was a little kid, so this is pretty crazy.”
Williams started out strong, winning her first service game at love. She later crushed two of the five fastest serves of the tournament.
Williams’ early serve averages were similar speeds to when she won her most recent of her seven Wimbledon singles titles in 2016.
Williams, who hit 26 winners to 37 unforced errors, struggled at times to get her first serve in (a 59% clip for the match).
A rapturous reception for @serenawilliams from the Centre Court crowd.#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/IoEwGeWkPo
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 30, 2026
Joint, ranked as high as 28th in the world last year, snapped an 11-match tour-level losing streak dating to January.
Williams played her first singles match since “evolving away” from the sport after the 2022 U.S. Open.
The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion became the second-oldest woman to play a Wimbledon main draw singles match (Martina Navratilova, 2004).
Why Serena Williams returned to tennis
Williams previously said her comeback is “really about my kids getting to see me play.” Daughters Olympia and Adira are 8 and 2 years old, respectively, and were in her player box as she walked on court Tuesday.
She said going into Wimbledon that she didn’t have a definition of success for this portion of her career, however long it lasts.
The comeback began with re-entering the drug-testing pool late last year and then playing doubles matches earlier in June.
She made a late decision to accept a Wimbledon singles wild card on the eve of the tournament.
“An athlete is the best thing that you can be in the highest place, and having an opportunity to still be able to possibly do that one last time is kind of cool and exciting,” Williams said three weeks ago at a Wimbledon tune-up tournament. “I don’t need to win. I’ve won more than most people have in their whole lives. So, for me, that is not important to me. It’s important that I keep reminding myself of that because I don’t have anything to prove. I don’t have anything to lose, and everything here is just to gain.”
What’s next for Serena Williams after Wimbledon?
Williams is entered in the Wimbledon women’s doubles with older sister Venus with their first match Thursday. They’ve won that title six times, the most recent in 2016.
Williams has not announced whether she plans to play more singles or doubles tournaments. The next Grand Slam, the U.S. Open, is Aug. 30-Sept. 13.
