Granted a wildcard, seven-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams returns to the Australian Open after a four-year hiatus!

The 2026 season is now underway, and the season’s first Grand Slam event, the Australian Open, has recently brought fresh updates. The newlywed American star Serena Williams secured the last wildcard spot for the women's singles main draw, making her comeback to Melbourne Park after a four-year gap since the 2021 season.

This week, the American tennis legend also appeared in the main draw of the WTA 250 Auckland Open, having received a wildcard for the women's singles. She may face China’s Wang Xinyu in the competition.

Born on June 17, 1980, Serena Williams will celebrate her 46th birthday this year. Despite approaching fifty, she continues to compete on the professional tennis circuit, demonstrating her deep passion for the sport. It’s worth noting that Serena began her tennis career back in 1994, when she first appeared on the WTA Tour.

As a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, Serena Williams has shown her best performances at Wimbledon, where she lifted the trophy five times in 2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, and 2008. Additionally, she has finished as runner-up four times on her favorite grass courts.

The US Open, held in her home country, is Serena’s second-best Grand Slam event, where she claimed titles in 2000 and 2001, and was runner-up twice in 1997 and 2002.

Besides Wimbledon and the US Open, the Australian Open ranks as Serena Williams’ third most successful Grand Slam tournament. She reached the women’s singles final twice, in 2003 and 2017, but unfortunately lost both matches. Notably, in 2017 at age 37, Serena showed a remarkable resurgence throughout the season.

That year, she reached the final at the Australian Open, the fourth round at the French Open, the final at Wimbledon, and the semifinals at the US Open. She also finished as runner-up at the WTA Finals. However, in recent seasons, due to aging and injuries, Serena has struggled to maintain such high-level performances consistently.

The American star last competed at the Australian Open in 2021, exiting in the second round. This return to Melbourne will mark Serena Williams’ 22nd appearance in the Australian Open main draw. Besides her, the remaining wildcards for this year’s women’s singles main draw have been awarded to Han Tianyu, Gibson, Preston, Jones, Diaz, Mandlik, and Rajona. Who do you think will advance the furthest among these players?(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Barbie)