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Tennis

Serena Williams Returning to Wimbledon After Receiving Wildcard Entry

Williams hasn’t played a professional tennis match since withdrawing from Wimbledon last year, but she’s finally ready for a comeback. The 40-year-old tennis player is set to return to the All England Club after being given a wildcard entry to the singles. Before heading to this Grand Slam tournament, Williams will play doubles at Eastbourne alongside Tunisia's Ons Jabeur. In an official statement announcing her return, she said that she’s looking forward to playing in front of the fans again. “Eastbourne has a unique charm that you don’t see anywhere else on tour… I am excited to return to the Rothesay International Eastbourne in England and to be back on the grass — a surface that has been so good to me throughout my career,” said the tennis legend. Williams won the women's singles event at Wimbledon on seven separate occasions, most recently in 2016. She also reached the final in 2018 and 2019 after returning from maternity leave, but lost to Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep, respectively. Williams made her latest appearance at this tournament last year but was forced to withdraw from the competition in the first round after suffering an injury. She missed many major tournaments in the months to come, plummeting to 1,208 in the world rankings due to prolonged inactivity.