Ex-Coach Hints Serena Williams Is Returning to Tennis

Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam champion, is reportedly training intensely and could make a return to professional tennis, her former coach Rick Macci says.

Macci, who coached Williams and her sister Venus in the early 1990s, told L’Equipe that the 44-year-old American has been training with multiple sparring partners, including male players and friend Alycia Parks, as she prepares for a potential competitive comeback.

“She’s training with lots of sparring partners guys,” Macci said. “She’s also played with Alycia Parks, a good friend of hers in South Florida. So I have no doubt about it (her comeback).”

Macci added that Williams appears to be approaching her return seriously, training “all out” and believing she could compete at the highest level again. He even suggested that events such as the Indian Wells or Miami Open could be possible stages for her return.

Williams last competed at the 2022 U.S. Open and won her final Grand Slam singles title in 2017. She rejoined the tennis anti-doping testing pool last year, a requirement to enter professional tournaments, but her team has not officially confirmed any comeback plans.