Serena is back... but for how long?
SERENA WILLIAMS made it a winning return at Eastbourne last night, but would not commit to a long-term future in tennis. The 40-year-old American delighted the evening crowd by teaming up with Ons Jabeur to emerge victorious from her first match since limping out of Wimbledon last year. Williams was clearly delighted after the scratch duo overcame Sara Sorribes Tormo and Marie Bouzkova 2-6, 6-3, 13-11.
But she does not wish to look beyond her appointment at the All England Club next week, which will surely feel more comfortable having come through an excellent workout. ‘Oh my God, it was so fun to play with Ons. It was great. We had a lot of fun,’ said Williams. ‘I’m literally taking it one day at a time. I’m not making any decisions after this. I love tennis and love playing but I also love what I do off the court.’ Williams was coy about how much preparation she has done for this trip. ‘I have been doing a lot of training, my body feels great,’ she added, having admitted she went ‘cold turkey’ after that injury a year ago. ‘I definitely felt good out there. I’m only covering half the court in doubles but it felt like it was clicking.’
Williams had her serve broken twice, but clearly improved as the match went on.
In the first set she looked heavy-legged at times but more than held her own as she and Jabeur became used to each other. It remains, however, early days to say whether she can make an impact in singles at Wimbledon. British tennis enjoyed an outstanding day, with two women notching superb wins at Eastbourne. Katie Boulter defeated last year’s Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova
1-6, 6-4, 6-4 and that was followed by a huge upset caused by Jodie Burrage.
The 23-year-old scored the best win of her career when she took out world No 4 Paula Badosa 6-4, 6-3 to make the third round. Burrage is ranked 169 and has barely played at an event like the Rothesay Open.
But for Boulter it was a seventh win on grass this summer. ‘I’ve been doing more and more fitness work that I haven’t been able to do before, it really helps you believe in yourself,’ she said. There was another good win for Ryan Peniston, who took down French Open quarter-finalist Holger Rune 4-6, 7-6, 6-1.
Dan Evans beat France’s Adrian Mannarino 6-4, 6-3.