Serena Williams wins in comeback match, her first in nearly four years

LONDON (AP) —

After nearly four years away from professional tennis, Serena Williams made a winning return at Queen’s Club on Tuesday.

The 44-year-old Williams showed she still has plenty of her trademark power, hitting service winners of up to 120 mph as she teamed up with 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko to win their opening doubles match at the grass-court tournament.

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Williams and Mboko beat third-seeded duo Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe 7-6 (2), 6-2 in Williams’ first professional match since the 2022 U.S. Open. To punctuate that she’s back, Williams served out the match with two aces followed by a service winner.

“It was so fun. I had so much fun playing with Victoria,” Williams said in an on-court interview. “She really was able to hold up the team and really play big on the big points. I could really rely on her. We’ve never played together but it just felt so natural playing with her.”

Mboko is one of the rising stars on the WTA tour, having already entered the top 10 in the rankings at No. 9.

“I feel very honored to play with Serena,” Mboko said, standing next to the 23-time Grand Slam winner. “I had a lot of fun, if anything. We really did that out there. I’m so happy to be playing beside you. And we’re going for more.”

Williams last week announced her return to doubles, but has yet to decide whether to target a comeback in singles as well.