Serena Williams is back in the headlines this week, first because of her controversial commercial of a weight-loss injection at the Super Bowl, and now because of the rumour that Serena Williams is planning a comeback to professional tennis. The rumour has always been nurtured by the same reporter, Ben Rothenberg, who reports now that "her comeback is fully undeniable and official", despite Williams herself denying that she was going to return to tennis.
The latest development, following Williams' inclusion in an anti doping testing pool by the International Tennis Integrity Agency, a mandatory step for active professional players in the Women's Tennis Association, is that Serena Williams will complete her six months of re-entry in the anti-doping testing pool on February 22nd, and from then on will officially be recognised as an active player.
Rothenberg suggests that Serena Williams will have plenty of time to prepare for a potential comeback at the WTA events of Indian Wells or Miami in March, or subsequent events in Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros or Wimbledon. Legally, she would be eligible for all of them.
In fact, her plans to return to tennis would date from summer 2025, where she applied for reinstatement in August to compete at the US Open, but was not allowed because her self-removal from the doping testing pool, a formality that will be solved by February 22.
Do you think Serena Williams, at the age of 44, will make a grand comeback to tennis, four years after her retirement in 2022? Her older sister Venus Williams still competes somewhat regularly, and despite her lack of victories, is still competitive.