Serena Williams denies comeback: “This wildfire is crazy”
Why has Serena Williams reentered the drug testing pool?
Serena Williams, Sao Paulo 2024
Image Credit: Zuma / Panoramic
Rumours of a Serena Williams comeback have been shot down by the tennis legend herself, with the 44-year-old calling the idea “crazy”.
Speculation that the 23-time Grand Slam champion would be returning to the sport in 2026 was sparked by the discovery that her name was on the list of players registered for drug testing.
Any player intending to play professionally must make themselves available for testing at least six months in advance.
Given Williams registered in October, this would make her available to return to the WTA Tour from April 2026.
However, the American quickly weighed in on the matter on her personal social media, saying:
“Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy.”
What’s going on with Serena Williams?
Given Williams has denied rumours of a comeback, this begs the question: why has she made herself available for drug testing, if she has no intention of playing professionally again?
One theory is that Williams plans to have one last hurrah on court with her sister, Venus Williams. The duo have won 14 Grand Slam titles playing together, with the latest at Wimbledon 2016.
If she is returning to play doubles, it follows that Williams wouldn’t consider herself to be “making a comeback”, hence her ability to deny these recent claims.
However, the timeline of putting herself back on the registry now makes sense, as it would mean she’s eligible to play Wimbledon and the US Open in 2026–two of the sisters’ favourite tournaments.
Whether or not there is any merit to this theory, only time will tell, as Williams isn’t given anything else away.
