Tennis superstar Venus Williams will make her return to the Wimbledon court after receiving a singles wildcard entry.
Williams’ appearance at the grass-court championship will make for her 24th showing in the singles draw. Williams is currently ranked at 697th.
The 43-year-old tennis champ beat 48th-ranked Camila Giorgi on June 19 at the Rothesay Classic in Birmingham, England. The match lasted three hours and included a brief injury scare for Williams who slipped and fell during it.
Williams will play Jelena Ostapenko next at the Rothesay Classic — which is a warm-up to Wimbledon.
“I thought I played so well today, and she also played incredible,” Williams said after the match. “I’m so surprised she’s not No. 1 in the world. There were so many moments where I just thought, ‘This match is over,’ and she would hit a shot from out of nowhere.”
“She pushed me to be better than what I thought I could be, and it’s great for me. I haven’t played a lot of matches, and it’s great to come through.”
Williams’ victory over Giorgi marked her first win over a player in the top 50 in almost four years.
And fans of the tennis great are excited about the news that following Williams’ win over Giorgi she will once again be hitting the Wimbledon court.
The Wimbledon championship kicks off on July 3. Williams is a five-time Wimbledon singles champion and seven-time grand slam champion. She last reached the finals of Wimbledon in 2017.
Williams has been dealing with a a hamstring injury since January. She made her return to the court just a few weeks ago at the Libema Open grass-court tournament. She lost that match to 17-year-old Swiss player Celine Naef.
“Amazing. I cannot believe I had the chance to play against Venus,” Naef said after her win. “She’s an amazing player and really a role model for everyone.”