When you have the kind of information that you know will shake the sporting world, it’s not easy to keep it under wraps.
It was during my conversation with an individual familiar with the preparations for next week’s WTA 500 event at the Queen’s Club in London that some comments over a potential comeback for Williams rose to the surface.
“So has Serena been on the phone asking for a wildcard?” I asked. The response that came back confirmed that the sporting comeback of this decade was, in fact, close to being confirmed.
That conversation took place in mid-May and while the impulse for a journalist is to break that news as soon as possible, this job often involves the concealing of information that has been given to you in confidence, as you are in a position of privilege. And this was one of those moments.
In the end, it was US journalist Jon Wertheim who ‘broke’ the news that Serena would be playing doubles at The Queen’s Club next week in an appearance on Andy Roddick’s Served podcast only last week.
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Then on Tuesday, the story that the tennis world has been waiting for since Serena put her name back on the doping control list in tennis at the back end of last year was finally confirmed.
Was she always going to make the Queen’s Club tournament her comeback event?
The answer to that question is no, as there were other options on the table for the 23-time Grand Slam champion, who has put in wildcard requests for a few grass court tournaments, including the WTA 500 event in Berlin later this month.
If she performs well and comes through without any injury concerns at Queen’s, 44-year-old Williams is expected to compete in doubles once again in Berlin and then, Tennis365 understands the plan is for Serena to play singles at Wimbledon.
The process behind a sporting story of this magnitude takes days and weeks to unfold, which explains why those in the know were aware that Williams could play at Queen’s a month ago, even though many close to the tournament in question and the wider media had no clue that this announcement was coming.
The reason for the delay in confirming the news was due to the Williams camp needing to get everything in place for the big announcement, which included a Serena video on her social media platforms, closely followed by statements from the WTA and the LTA in London, who are hosts of the tournament at The Queen’s Club.
In only its second year on the calendar, the LTA have done a great job of securing the return of a superstar who will create global headlines with her return to action and for Williams, this will be a test of how far she can push this after four years away from competitive action.
She still believes she can challenge the best in the game despite her advancing years and that mindset is the primary reason why she is the greatest female tennis player of all-time.
Whether that goal is realistic remains to be seen for this mother of two, but Serena is no ordinary athlete and she will aim to prove that over the next few weeks.
“Serena has shown me so many times that she’s capable of doing things that are theoretically impossible,” her former coach Patrick Mouratoglou told TNT Sports.
“I believe she’s capable of anything – that’s the first thing.
“I think she wants to test herself in doubles first. That’s probably why she requested a wildcard in doubles, and if she’s satisfied with her level, maybe she’ll request a wildcard in singles at Wimbledon.
“That doesn’t seem like a likely scenario to me, but Serena isn’t the kind of person who would come back if she didn’t feel capable of playing and beating the best
“If it means playing a supporting role, that’s just not her style. I think this doubles match is also a way for her to see if she feels capable of beating the best.
“Doubles isn’t the same as singles, of course, but it’s already a first taste of competition.”
Williams has not put herself through the ordeal of doping control for more than six months to play doubles with Victoria Mboko at Queen’s next week.
The greatest champions don’t play the sport to pick up the scraps and declare that taking part is more important than winning.
That has never been and will never be the Serena ethos.
She will be forced to sit through plenty of interviews, endless scrutiny and face the kind of spotlight she doesn’t need at this stage of her life.
That alone tells you all you need to know about this remarkable sporting comeback.
Serena Williams has never played tennis for anything other than Grand Slam titles and however unlikely it may seem for her to achieve that dream, she has always believed anything is possible.
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