LONDON — Tennis icon Serena Williams celebrated her remarkable return to the court on Tuesday, with the talented Canadian, Victoria Mboko, by her side.
The 44-year-old Williams joined forces with the 19-year-old Mboko to secure a thrilling victory against New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and America’s Nicole Melichar-Martinez, winning 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the opening round of the HSBC Championships on the grass.
The crowd at The Queen’s Club in West London erupted with cheers as Williams stepped onto the court for her first competitive match in over four years.
The 23-time singles Grand Slam champion, who boasts an impressive 14 major doubles titles alongside her sister Venus, closed out the match with a powerful ace to set up match point.
“It’s such an honor to play alongside Serena,” Mboko shared in a post-match interview, beaming with excitement. “I had a blast; we really put in a great performance together. I’m thrilled to be playing with you, and we’re aiming for more wins!”
Mboko, now ranked No. 9 in the world, left a strong impression on her legendary teammate.
“It was an absolute joy to play with Victoria,” Williams remarked. “She really stepped up during crucial moments, and I felt I could count on her. Though this was our first time teaming up, it felt incredibly effortless.”
However, Williams humbly graded her performance during the post-match press conference.
“I’d give myself a C-minus,” she noted. “Considering the circumstances—coming back on grass isn’t easy after four years away—it was decent overall.”
This assessment might be quite self-critical, given that Routliffe is a two-time U.S. Open doubles champion with Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski, and Melichar-Martinez has reached the finals in both doubles at Flushing Meadows and Wimbledon.
Mboko clearly was in awe of her partner’s performance.
“I thought she was moving incredibly well,” Mboko exclaimed. “There was that standout backhand shot during a rally that left me thinking, ‘Wow, she’s still got it!’”
Routliffe, who has switched partners frequently this year after parting ways with Dabrowski, entered the match as the third seed alongside Melichar-Martinez at Queen’s Club.
Next up for Williams and Mboko from Burlington, Ont., is a match against Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., and Germany’s Laura Siegemund, who advanced with a 6-2, 2-6, 11-9 win over Russia’s Alexandra Panova and Demi Schuurs from the Netherlands.
Fernandez, who garnered fan-favorite status while competing with Venus Williams last year and made an impressive quarterfinal run at the U.S. Open, faced an earlier exit in singles, falling to Britain’s Katie Boulter with scores of 3-6, 7-6 (4), 7-5.
Ranked eighth at The Queen’s Club, Fernandez was in control of the match, leading a set and tied 3-3 in the second, when play was suspended due to darkness.
When play resumed, Boulter recalibrated and managed to win a closely contested second set.
Fernandez battled back from a break down in the third, but faltered again when the score reached 5-5, allowing Boulter to regain the upper hand before ultimately serving for the match.
Boulter is set to face Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian next.
This marked their first encounter in a WTA Tour main draw. Previously, Boulter had bested Fernandez in qualifying matches at the 2018 Canadian Open, only for Fernandez to turn the tables at the 2023 Citi Open in Washington.
