Serena Williams exits Wimbledon singles in first round
Williams lost to Maya Joint in her first singles match since 2022, while defending champion Iga Swiatek opened with a three-set win.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Serena Williams’ return to Grand Slam singles ended in a first-round Wimbledon loss, cutting short one of the tournament’s most closely watched comebacks. AFP and AP reported that 20-year-old Australian Maya Joint beat Williams 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-3 on Centre Court on Tuesday.
The match was Williams’ first professional singles appearance since 2022, according to AFP and AP. The 44-year-old, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, saved a match point in the second set and forced a decider before Joint recovered to close out the win.
Williams broke first in the third set but faded as the match went on, AFP and AP reported. The defeat marked her third straight first-round exit at the All England Club, after losses at the same stage in 2021 and four years ago.
Joint said afterward that she had slept little before facing Williams, according to AFP. “I didn’t get much sleep last night, I was up until 2:00 am last night just thinking about it,” Joint said. “The start was very nerve-wracking. Trying to close out the match, she definitely raised her level.”
Williams received a loud welcome on Centre Court, with AP reporting that the match began under a closed roof and that fans held signs greeting her return. AFP and AP noted that Williams became the second-oldest woman to play Wimbledon singles in the Open era, behind Martina Navratilova, who reached the second round at age 47 in 2004.
Williams won the most recent of her seven Wimbledon singles titles 10 years ago, AFP and AP reported. Her last Grand Slam singles title came at the 2017 Australian Open, when she was pregnant with her first child.
Joint entered Wimbledon ranked 87th after losing 13 of her previous 14 matches, according to AFP and AP. She had been in the top 30 as recently as February and will next play Alexandra Eala, who beat Renata Zarazua while dropping three games for her first Wimbledon win.
Williams remains in the tournament in doubles, where she is set to play alongside her sister Venus, according to AFP and AP. The sisters are seeking a seventh Wimbledon women’s doubles title together.
Swiatek advances after three sets
Defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also had an uneven opening match, AFP and AP reported, but the third seed beat Taylor Townsend 6-1, 2-6, 6-3. Swiatek made 16 unforced errors in the second set before taking the decider.
Swiatek said the win carried weight because she had not won a three-set match this year, according to AFP. She will face former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova in the second round on Thursday.
Second seed Elena Rybakina also advanced in three sets against Lois Boisson, AFP and AP reported. Rybakina could overtake Aryna Sabalenka for the world No. 1 ranking next week, according to the agencies.
Zverev moves on, Shelton goes out
In the men’s draw, French Open champion Alexander Zverev beat Belgian Alexander Blockx 6-4, 6-7 (8/10), 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/0), AFP and AP reported. The German second seed is trying to pass the Wimbledon fourth round for the first time.
Fourth seed Ben Shelton lost to Finland’s Otto Virtanen after missing a match point, with Virtanen taking the fifth-set tie-break 11/9, according to AFP and AP. American sixth seed Taylor Fritz and fifth seed Alex de Minaur both advanced in straight sets.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.