​Serena Williams will return to singles at Wimbledon at age 44, drawing Australia’s Maya Joint in the first round after securing the final wildcard into the women’s singles draw. The 23-time Grand Slam champion had already been confirmed to compete in doubles with her sister Venus at the tournament, continuing her comeback that began with doubles at Queen’s. Wimbledon had earlier announced seven of the eight wildcard recipients for the women’s singles, with the last spot yet to be named.
Williams hasn’t played singles since the 2022 US Open, where she appeared to bid farewell after a third-round defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic. The seven-time Wimbledon champion last competed at SW19 earlier that season, losing in the first round to Harmony Tan in her first match in a year. She will face Maya Joint, world No. 53, in the first round on Tuesday 30 July, in the final match scheduled for Centre Court that day following defending champion Iga Swiatek and French Open champion Alexander Zverev’s opener against Alexander Blockx. Swiatek’s match began at 1:30pm, and after a tight win in three sets against Townsend, Zverev and Blockx will play a best-of-five-set encounter. Williams could appear on Centre Court around 7:00pm BST (12:30pm ET).
On Day 2, Tuesday 30 June, Centre Court is set to host Iga Swiatek vs. Taylor Townsend at 1:30pm, followed by Blockx vs. Zverev in progress, and Serena Williams vs. Maya Joint to come. Joint, 20, is currently ranked 87th, with a career-high of 28th, but has lost her last 11 tour-level matches. A former Eastbourne grass champion last year, Joint is making only her second Wimbledon appearance and has not advanced past the first round at the tournament, with her best Grand Slam result a second-round appearance. Born in 2006, Williams was already a seven-time Grand Slam champion long before Joint’s rise, and had won 16 more majors beyond that.
Joint won the Eastbourne title in 2025 but has now suffered an 11-match losing streak. She reflected on receiving Wimbledon’s wildcard, saying, “It’s not every day Wimbledon holds a wild card for someone. I happened to be one of those people. I should take this opportunity. Who knows if I’ll ever make it here again. This could be it.” Williams and Joint’s potential on-court timing places Williams in action on Tuesday evening, with the Williams sisters last playing doubles together at the 2022 US Open.