EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsSerena Williams is officially making her comeback to professional tennis.Williams, 44, first teased her return on Monday morning with a social media video from longtime sponsor Nike. In the 17-second clip, Williams can be seen on the tennis court walking over to her buzzing phone while text reading "Guess everybody heard the news" is then shown.Minutes later, the HSBC Championships, a 500-level event held at Queen's Club in London, announced Williams would be playing in doubles in next week's event. "The Queen returns," the tournament shared on social media."Queen's Club feels like the perfect place to begin this next chapter," Williams said in an announcement from the tournament. "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."The WTA confirmed Williams' return with a post, writing Williams was "officially returning to the stage.""Serena is one of the greatest athletes of all-time, with a legacy that extends far beyond the court," WTA chair Valerie Camillo said in a statement. "Her return is an expression of her passion for competition, and I cannot wait to see her face a new generation of top players. "Serena is not just a great champion. She's a successful entrepreneur, a powerful advocate for the issues that matter -- and one of the most iconic women in the world. We are thrilled to welcome her back to the WTA Tour at this hugely exciting moment for women's tennis." The winner of 23 major titles -- the most by any woman in the Open Era -- Williams had fueled speculation of a comeback in the fall after reentering the International Tennis Integrity Agency's (ITIA) drug-testing pool, which is required to be allowed to compete again. She denied the rumors in December, writing "Omg yall I'm NOT coming back" on X.But practice footage alongside Alycia Parks, currently the world No. 79, shared on social media in early March did little to stop the chatter. Parks then revealed that they had been training together while she was at home in Florida up to "three times a week.""She is in great shape," Parks told Tennis Majors in February. "So I think she would kill it on tour."As reports surfaced last week that Williams had requested a wild card for the HSBC Championships to play doubles alongside Victoria Mboko, several WTA players expressed their excitement about Williams' potential return."That would be really cool," Coco Gauff said. "I did say one of my biggest regrets was not being able to play her. ... We'll see. But I think it would be cool for the sport to have a legend back playing."Added Naomi Osaka, who famously beat Williams in the 2018 US Open final: "That's definitely something I would be really excited about, just to see around the sites and playing matches again. I think it's really cool for tennis, I would be excited to see her outfits again, too. But also her playing. I think she's one of the best players in the world, of course."Mboko, currently the world No. 9, did not confirm the reports but instead said she wanted to let Williams speak for herself."I feel like if she's ready to come back on her own terms, then I feel like it's up to her to announce that," Mboko told reporters Friday.Williams has yet to announce what other tournaments she will be playing. Jill Smoller, Williams' agent, has yet to respond to ESPN's request for comment.In August of 2022, Williams announced in an essay for Vogue that she would be playing her last tournament at the US Open the following month. In the essay, she opted to use the world "evolve" instead of "retire," and expressed her mixed feelings on the topic."One thing I'm not going to do is sugarcoat this," Williams wrote then. "I know that a lot of people are excited about and look forward to retiring, and I really wish I felt that way."Williams cited her desire to grow her family as the reason for her decision. She welcomed her second child, a daughter named Adira, in August of 2023, with husband Alexis Ohanian. Williams was privately pregnant with their first child, another daughter named Olympia, during her title run at the Australian Open in 2017.She returned to the sport after a challenging childbirth and maternity leave looking to tie Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 major titles. She reached four Slam finals but fell short of her goal. Since then, Novak Djokovic has tied Court's mark. He too said it would be "great to have her back" when asked about it in the spring.Williams' older sister Venus, 45, came back to the sport last July after a 16-month absence. After Venus lost in the first round at the US Open, Serena praised her on social media and wrote "P.S. I hope to be like you," at the end of her post.Venus has been asked repeatedly about a potential Serena return during her tournament appearances, and she admitted she never wanted Serena to retire."I mean, I keep saying to my team, 'The only thing that would make this better is if she was here,' like we always did everything together, so of course I miss her," Venus said at the Citi Open in July. "But if she comes back, I'm sure she'll let y'all know."Williams is one of the most decorated tennis players in the history of the sport with 73 career singles titles, four Olympic gold medals and 319 weeks at No. 1. She has won 14 major doubles titles alongside Venus and is the only player to record a career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. She has earned over $94 million in prize money throughout her career and is believed to be the highest-paid female athlete of all time.
