Serena Williams confirms her comeback to tennis with Queen’s doubles wild card

Serena Williams’ comeback to tennis has been confirmed, with the 44-year-old playing doubles at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club next week.

The 23-time grand slam singles champion’s imminent return has been touted since it was revealed in December she had re-entered the anti-doping programme – a prerequisite to play on the tour again.

She has been eligible since February but has chosen the British grass-court season to step back on to the match court in what will be one of the biggest sports stories of the year.

Williams has not played since a glittering farewell at the US Open in 2022, although she pointedly avoided using the word retirement, instead saying she was “evolving away” from tennis.