Serena Williams already has her white sneakers: she returns to Wimbledon after a year of absence from the fields

“SW and SW19. It’s a date. 2022, see you there.” With that short sentence, which she posted on her Instagram account along with a photo of her feet in white sneakers on a grass pitch, Serena Williams announced that she will be back on the circuit after a year of inactivity. And that her first big challenge will be at Wimbledon, no less (which SW19 is the postcode of All England Lawn Tennis Club), one of the two “greats” that he has conquered several times.

Shortly after the American uploaded that post, the British Grand Slam itself confirmed that the seven-time champion of the competition – she has the same number of titles in Australia – will play the single’s table for the 21st time, for which she received a special invitation from the organization. We remind you that, due to her long inactivity, the former number one is today at the 1,208th step of the ranking.

Williams, likewise, will see action the week before the start of the Principal Londoner Because he also received a wild card to play in the double draw of the Eastbourne WTA 500which will start next Monday. There he will form a couple with the Tunisian Ons Jabeurnumber four in the world in singles and this year’s champion WTA 1000 Madrid.

The 40-year-old American will thus return to the field after almost a year without playing. His last appearance was on the grass of the British Grand Slam last year. It was June 29, when she retired injured in the first round match against the Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich.

When the score in the first set was 3-3, Serena – who entered the field with a large bandage on the thigh of her right leg – slipped, struggled off the ground and approached the net, with her snatches. eyes and clearly grieved, to concede victory to his rival.

Thus, he is once again left with the desire to add his 24th “great” title to match the Australian’s all-time record. Margherita Cortea brand that in a few weeks will be looking for London again.

The injury forced her to lower the curtain on her 2021, in which she played only six tournaments (including the Australian Open – it reached the semifinals -, Roland Garros – it fell in the second round – and English Major) and finished with a record of 12 wins and six losses. The hiatus in the second half of the calendar took her from eighth to 41st in the standings, closing the season outside the top 40 for the first time since 2006.

At the end of last year there were versions that spoke of a possible return to Melbourne in early 2022. But Williams ended up leaving the “big” ocean, following the doctors’ recommendations.

“While it is not an easy decision to make, I am not at the optimum physical level to compete. Melbourne is one of my favorite cities and I am looking forward to playing the tournament next year. I will miss the fans but I am looking forward to it. return to compete on the courts at the highest level, “he said.

In early April, at the start of Brick Dust’s European tour, it emerged that Williams had ended her relationship Patrick Mouratoglou, with which he won ten Grand Slam titles between 2012 and 2019. And rumors of a possible retirement have reappeared. But Serena denied them when, during an event of Bitcoin in Miami, he said he was preparing for Wimbledon and the US Open.

A few days ago Mouratoglou, who now coaches Simona Halep, told the details of the end of the partnership with the American.

“I wanted to be fair to her and not be disappointed at the end of my career. I went to ask her what she was going to do. She wasn’t very clear. I asked her if she wanted to go to Roland Garros and she said she didn’t know. It was six weeks. before the tournament. I told her that I would wait for her on Monday to train and that if she didn’t show up I would consider myself a free coach. ” she told the coach in an interview with the Romanian newspaper Official Sporturilorwho confessed to losing his job which is why he decided to join Halep’s team.

Finally, Williams has decided to return and will aim for everything in Wimbledon, the tournament he last won in 2016 and in which he will look for an extra title to expand his legend.

Tim Van Rijthoven is still lucky: he received a wild card to play at Wimbledon

“I’m trying to figure out what’s going on,” said Tim Van Rijthoven this weekend. The fact is that the Dutchman had the week of his life and, having never won a match on the ATP circuit, he ended up crowned in the tournament in Hertogenbosch, in the Netherlands, and none other than with whom the next day he would rise to the first of the ranking: Daniil Medvedev.

Without a doubt, Van Rijthoven was the man of the week. But it didn’t stop there because he keeps getting good news. When you haven’t got your feet on the ground (or grass) yet, an invitation to join Wimbledon has just arrived.

“I will play the first Grand Slam of my career. It is something fantastic, incredible,” said the player who will face the best in the world in the most traditional tournament in tennis history.