Serena Williams returned to the tennis court on Tuesday after almost four years away from the sport.
She teamed up with Victoria Mboko to win a doubles match at the Queen's Club Championships in London.
Williams, 44, last played in 2022, when she lost a singles match at the US Open to Australia’s Ajla Tomljanović. At the time, she did not use the word “retirement,” instead saying she was “evolving away from tennis.”
"There comes a time in life when we have to decide to move in a different direction," Williams posted on Instagram with a picture of herself on the cover of Vogue with the title "Serena's Farewell."
Williams has dominated women's tennis for much of her career. She has won 23 grand slam singles titles, which is the most in the Open era and one behind the all-time record held by Margaret Court. She also has won four Olympic gold medals and over $94.5 million in prize money.
She and her older sister, Venus, transformed the sport when they became professionals as teenage phenoms. They've teamed up for many grand slam doubles titles and faced off against each other in grand slam finals.
