Serena Williams has added another stop to her comeback tour: the Berlin Tennis Open.
Just a day after announcing her return to professional tennis, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion has been added to the 16-team doubles field at Germany’s WTA 500 event.
“Every tournament I add to my schedule right now feels special, and Berlin is no exception,” Williams said in a statement shared by the event on Tuesday. “I’m excited to compete in front of the German fans and continue building momentum throughout the grass-court season.”
Williams is set to play in the doubles tournament at the HSBC Championships at London’s Queen’s Club, which kicks off June 8. On Thursday, 19-year-old Canadian rising star Victoria Mboko confirmed on Instagram that she’ll be Williams’ partner at the event. The Berlin Tennis Open will begin June 13 and Williams’ partner has yet to be named.
The 44-year old tennis great is returning to the sport after almost four years away from competition. She firmly denied rumors of her return on social media just last year.
Williams appeared to poke fun at her own turnaround with a short ad video posted to X on Thursday captioned “I changed my mind.”
Despite prior rumors, Williams’ sister Venus seemed just as surprised as everyone else that Serena was returning to the competitive circuit.
“I think she hits every now and then,” Venus Williams, who also still competes professionally, said during a recent interview at Roland-Garros. “I never see her on the court that often, so I don’t know when she’s been practicing, honestly.”
Despite not having seen her practice first-hand, Venus Williams is not worried about how Serena will play at the upcoming competitions.
“She’s, I think, a little bit of a natural,” she said with a laugh. “She has a pretty good record. She knows what she’s doing. She’s very tenacious. I’m not worried about how she’s going to play, even though I really haven’t seen her play. It’s so crazy.”
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