London, June 4 (IANS) Serena Williams’ highly anticipated return to competitive tennis has taken an intriguing new turn, with the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion set to partner Canadian star Victoria Mboko in the doubles draw at the Queen’s Club Championships.
The pairing was confirmed by Mboko on social media on Thursday, days after Serena announced she would return to the WTA Tour for the first time since her farewell appearance at the 2022 US Open. “The Queen is back. An honour to share the court with one of the greatest athletes of all time this week. Even more excited to play doubles together! Tennis is pretty special,” Mboko wrote on Instagram while sharing the news on Thursday.
The duo have received a wildcard entry into the 16-team doubles competition at Queen’s Club, marking the start of the grass-court season ahead of Wimbledon. For Serena, the event will represent her first competitive appearance in nearly four years and her debut at the historic London venue.
Although Queen’s Club has long been one of the most prestigious stops on the grass-court calendar, women were unable to compete there between 1973 and 2024, making this year’s edition the first opportunity for Serena to play at the tournament.
The announcement adds another notable chapter to the remarkable career of the American great, whose achievements have transformed women’s tennis. Serena captured 73 WTA singles titles and spent 186 consecutive weeks as world No. 1, matching one of the longest reigns at the top of the rankings in history. She also finished five seasons as the year-end No. 1 player in the world.
Her doubles legacy is equally impressive. Alongside sister Venus Williams, Serena won 22 titles and compiled one of the most dominant records in the sport, including a perfect 14-0 mark in Grand Slam doubles finals and four Olympic gold medals.
For Mboko, the partnership represents an opportunity to share the court with the player she has admired throughout her life. “I looked up to her. She’s my idol, so it’s really cool. Me and Serena have stayed in touch, which is really, really nice, because you know, I really look up to her. I mean, the fact that she even knows me is very, it’s very exciting,” Mboko told reporters after her second-round win at Roland Garros while speaking of Serena.
Serena herself expressed excitement about beginning her comeback on a surface that delivered some of the most memorable moments of her career. “Queen’s Club feels like the perfect place to begin this next chapter. Grass has given me some of the most meaningful moments of my career, and I’m excited to be back competing on one of the sport’s most iconic stages,” Serena said.
The Queen’s Club Championships will run from June 8 to 14 and feature a strong doubles field, including several top-ranked specialists. Yet much of the attention will be fixed on the wildcard pairing of Serena and Mboko, whose cross-generational partnership promises to be one of the headline attractions of the grass-court swing.
–IANS
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