Serena Williams’ Wimbledon return was special, because her tennis was the show

THE ALL ENGLAND CLUB, London — Wimbledon’s Royal Box wasn’t packed with A-list celebrities Tuesday evening, despite the occasion. Movie stars, musicians and generational athletes didn’t dot the stands on Centre Court. There was no special ceremony ahead of Serena Williams’ first singles match in nearly four years — there isn’t even a separate night session at tennis’ oldest Grand Slam, and thus no natural way to single out what was perhaps the most anticipated match of the year.

For a tournament with such meticulous dedication to tradition and history, there isn’t much pomp and circumstance about Wimbledon once the matches begin. Tennis is the whole show, and that’s enough.

It’s also part of what made Wimbledon feel like the perfect setting for 44-year-old Williams’ return to Grand Slam tennis, a 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3 loss to the 20-year-old American-born Aussie Maya Joint.

Grass is a comfortable surface for Williams, who won seven singles championships at Wimbledon. The timing of the tournament gives her a long runway, should she choose to play in front of home crowds at the U.S. Open later this summer.

But beginning her singles comeback at Wimbledon also allowed the moment to feel appropriately special, while keeping the focus on tennis. Tuesday felt like any other day at the All England Club. In New York, U.S. Open crowds would have almost certainly mobbed Williams the moment she stepped within public view. At Wimbledon, a group of politely interested onlookers watched her mid-afternoon practice with little fanfare. There were no fans on grounds holding signs, or people clearly there for her match alone — Centre Court tickets are far too exclusive to obtain with little warning, and Williams only announced she was playing singles the week before.

After months of speculation that morphed into anticipation a week ago, there was little buildup for the start of the match.

Wimbledon does not sell separate night session tickets, so a slog of a four-set match won by French Open champion Alexander Zverev against Alexander Blockx rolled right into Williams’ return without ceremony.

A short hype video played on the screen tastefully planted in the corner of Centre Court while many ticket-holders were still milling about the stadium, getting refreshments. Joint and Williams walked out one after the other without an emcee announcing their names.

That’s the usual practice at Wimbledon. No flashing lights, no blaring music, no extra mustard, certainly not for a first-round match.

Here, tradition and order bend to no player. But the tournament’s special status — its unwillingness to place any person above the sport — are part of why Williams wanted to play singles, not just doubles with her sister Venus, after waffling on the decision.

“Well, I thought not every day Wimbledon holds a wild card for someone,” she said in a news conference Sunday. “I can name probably like a handful of people. I happened to be one of those people. I thought I should really take this opportunity.”

Wimbledon may not change, but its crowd will get loud — especially with the roof over Center Court closed, as it was Tuesday because the match began after 7:15 p.m.

When the lights embedded in the retractable roof flickered on five minutes later, a tremble went through the stadium. Those who weren’t already standing in anticipation jumped up to get a look at Williams and Joint walking onto court, and the first cheer of the night broke out: “Let’s go ‘Rena, let’s go!” The cheers rose in volume when Williams bounded to the center of the court and shuffled side to side like a boxer, loosening her shoulder joint and getting used to the feeling of grass beneath her feet again.

The crowd worked itself into a fever pitch by Wimbledon standards as the night went on, roaring with applause when she finally held serve after a long game and exploding when she won the second set. Before the start of the third, a woman in the crowd leapt to her feet during the quiet of the set break and cried “Yes! Come on Serena!” while clapping.

She then excitedly turned to her neighbors in the stands and said, “Please excuse me, please excuse me.”

Even Williams’ outfit was toned down. During her farewell tour in 2022 she sported crystals on her jacket and shoes, but Tuesday she had nothing elaborate to reveal — just a simple Nike top and skirt with a breathable pattern. Williams decided to play the night before Wimbledon’s deadline, which didn’t give her longtime clothing sponsor enough time to whip up something special.

“This was a game-time decision. Fashion obviously means a lot to me, but there’s only so much you can do in such a quick turnaround,” she said in her pre-tournament news conference.

Unadorned outfit aside, the feeling of watching Williams play was familiar. Dedicated fans have seen her walk out onto court, two thin headbands pinned atop her head, over-ear headphones canceling out the noise around her, hundreds of times.

But there was plenty new to notice, too.

Williams, likely for the first time in many viewers’ memory, looked hesitant with her footwork, as if delicately feeling for purchase on the slick grass. She tugged at the bottom of her crop top between points. Her grunts came late into rallies, as if she was encouraging herself to go for more.

Williams has long played with an air of regality she earned while accumulating 23 Grand Slam titles. She doesn’t rush when moving between points. She arrives on court with her eyes narrowed and chin tilted just so, as if surveying her dominion.

Tuesday, she looked more human. A little nervous. A little rusty. Entirely, endearingly, relatable.

Hearing the applause of an adoring crowd while walking onto Centre Court at Wimbledon is surely something every champion misses when they retire. But Williams has also repeatedly said that a large driving force in her comeback is her desire to have her children see her play the sport she dedicated her life to, from childhood until age 40. Could anyone who hasn’t seen Williams play tennis truly understand her? It was the thing she did better than nearly anyone else on the planet for the better part of 30 years.

But there is some poetry in Williams’ daughters, Olympia and Adira, not seeing her as a world-beater. They still got to experience the crowd’s love for their mother, see the impact she makes. In the months leading up to her return to Wimbledon, they most likely watched some of the work she did in preparation. Maybe they saw her sweat. Maybe they saw her fail, and start again.

Williams’ children didn’t watch her win her match Tuesday. But they saw her. Maybe the memories will help them know her mother more fully. That would seem more than enough.