One of the greatest tennis players of all time has just made a significant move that could signal a grand return to the game.
Serena Williams, 44, has surfaced on the International Tennis Integrity Agency’s (ITIA) latest list of players in its registered testing pool, The Athletic reported on Tuesday.
The testing pool list, last updated on Oct. 6 with Williams’ name among registered players, does not include all active players—only those deemed highest priority in the top 100, who must register their whereabouts every day and participate in random drug testing.
Williams can return to competition after six months in the pool, potentially allowing her to play in tennis tournaments as early as April 2026.
The Daily Beast contacted Williams’ representatives for comment on her potential return but received no immediate response.
On Tuesday afternoon, Williams posted a message to Twitter denying that she was returning to the game. “OMG y’all I’m NOT coming back,” she wrote. “This wildfire is crazy.”
Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy-
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) December 2, 2025
“She has notified us that she wants to be reinstated into the testing pool,” Adrian Bassett, a spokesperson for the ITIA, told The Athletic. “I do not know if this means she is coming back, or just giving herself the option. All I can say is she’s back in the pool and therefore subject to whereabouts.”
The 23-time major champion announced her retirement in 2022 in a Vogue essay, writing that she was “evolving away from tennis, toward other things” that were important to her, including her family and venture capital firm.
Last week, the mother of two posted photos of herself on the tennis court with her youngest daughter, Adira River Ohanian, whom she shares with husband and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, 42. “This is me sharing my passion for tennis with my youngest daughter,” Williams captioned the post, without making any further public comments about a potential return.
Williams’ older sister, Venus Williams, 45, returned to the court in July after a 16-month hiatus due to her struggle with uterine fibroids. “The only thing that would make this better is if she was here,” Venus said about Serena while discussing her return at the DC Open competition.
In August, after Venus competed in the Women’s Doubles with Canadian player Leylah Fernandez instead of her sister—with whom she won 14 major titles—Serena posted a joking, mocking TikTok, appearing to roll her eyes at the new duo and look unimpressed.
According to The Athletic, if Serena Williams returns from retirement, the most likely tournament for her to compete in is the star-studded U.S. Open mixed doubles in 2026.
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