Serena remains Wimbledon royalty
WIMBLEDON, England – Serena Williams didn’t look in the best of form Monday during her first Wimbledon match since winning a seventh title here in 2016.
But her 7-5, 6-3 firstround win vs. Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands keeps the 23-time Grand Slam champion in the hunt for an eighth Wimbledon trophy.
And that’s certainly good news for Royal Watchers out there, who hope Williams’ continued presence at Wimbledon will bring her close friend, the Duchess of Sussex, formerly known as actress Meghan Markle, out to see her play.
It would be only fair if Markle’s husband, Prince Harry, who hasn’t been a regular at Wimbledon like his brother, Prince William, tags along considering Williams and her husband, Alexis Ohanian, accompanied the Duchess to watch Harry play polo in the Audi Polo Challenge, at Ascot, on Saturday. FYI: The prince and his brother, Prince William, were on the winning team.
In fact, in what had to be one of the most unique of absence excuses, Williams delayed her preWimbledon news conference, initially scheduled for Saturday, until Sunday so she could make the polo scene.
“I enjoyed polo,” said Williams, who attended the Royal couples’ marriage in May. “It was really fun. It’s an intense sport. I feel like they’re going sometimes 45 miles an hour. I didn’t know this at all. For me it’s very scary. Wow, it’s very respectable. I feel like every time I watch a new sport, I get so much new respect for it.”
When asked if the Duchess is likely to show up at Wimbledon, Williams said, smiling, “I don’t know. We’ll see. If I keep winning.”
It was highly unlikely that the Duke and Duchess would show up on Monday as Williams match was scheduled for Court 1, the second-biggest stadium to Centre Court at Wimbledon, but Women’s first round: No. 25 Serena Williams beat Arantxa Rus 7-5, 6-3; Donna Vekic beat No. 4 Sloane Stephens 6-1, 6-3; No. 9 Venus Williams beat Johanna Larsson 6-7(3), 6-2, 6-1; Tatjana Maria beat No. 5 Elina Svitolina 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-1. 4 – The number of mothers who were victorious on day one at Wimbledon. Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Tatjana Maria and Evgeniya Rodina all made it through to the second round.
STAT OF THE DAY
“I saw 150. But then I don’t know if it’s good or not. It was cool.” – Gael Monfils after a faulty speed gun registered his serve at 150 mph during his victory over Richard Gasquet.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
a venue that doesn’t technically have a Royal Box.
That said, an All England Club official confirmed there is a box that a member of the Royal Family could utilize if they did want to see a match on Court 1.
Williams lacked the kind of sharpness she prefers. That hardly comes as a surprise considering she didn’t return to the tour until March after giving birth to her daughter, Alexis Olympia, in September.
“I’m just taking it one at a time,” Williams said. “I don’t think I was at my best (Monday), but I’m practicing much better. I feel as long as I, you know, keep going, hopefully I’ll be able to get there. I haven’t played a tremendous amount of tennis since I had the baby. And I haven’t played in wind in a really long time. So I’m just not used to that yet. It’s just getting all back to the hang of things, getting used to different circumstances.”