Reuters
Serena Williams. [Photo Credit: Reuters]
Former World No. 1 Serena Williams took a major step toward a potential return to professional tennis by recently re-entering the anti-doping testing pool, The Athletic reported Tuesday.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion’s name appeared on an Oct. 6 list of players in the International Registered Testing Pool, a requirement for a return to competition.
A spokesperson for Williams did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Williams, 44, last played on the WTA Tour at the U.S. Open in 2022. In August of that year, she announced in a Vogue magazine article that she was “evolving away” from tennis.
Ranked No. 1 for 319 weeks, Williams won 73 singles titles on the WTA Tour and earned nearly $95 million in prize money. She won Wimbledon and the Australian Open seven times each, the U.S. Open six times and the French Open three times.
Williams also won 14 major doubles titles with her sister, Venus. She is the only player to accomplish a career Golden Slam (all four majors) in both singles and doubles.
Williams and her husband, Alexis Ohanian, are raising two daughters.
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