After securing a doubles wildcard to play Wimbledon with her sister Venus, Serena Williams will also compete in singles after being awarded a special invitation into the main draw.
After being away from competition since the 2022 US Open, the 44-year-old Williams recently returned to the tour and has played two doubles matches this month in preparation for Wimbledon. Her comeback includes a notable win at Queen’s Club, where she and Victoria Mboko defeated third seeds Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez. Last week in Berlin, however, Williams and Karolina Muchova were defeated in the opening round.
Williams boasts one of the greatest singles records in Wimbledon history, having won the title seven times and finished runner-up on four additional occasions. No player has ever won the Wimbledon ladies’ singles title as a wildcard. In the women’s doubles, only Serena and Venus Williams have won the title as wildcards, accomplishing the feat in both 2000 and 2002.
Serena is one of eight players awarded a women’s singles wildcard for Wimbledon 2026. The recipients also include recent Roland Garros finalist Maja Chwalinska of Poland, alongside British hopefuls Harriet Dart, Alicia Dudeney, Hannah Klugman, Mika Stojsavljevic, Katie Swan, and Mimi Xu.