Serena Williams Stages Winning Doubles Comeback at Queen’s Club with Mboko

Serena Williams made a winning return to competitive tennis on Tuesday at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club in West London, partnering with Canada’s Victoria Mboko to defeat New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and American Nicole Melichar-Martinez 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the first round of doubles. The 44-year-old Williams received a loud ovation from the crowd as she played her first match in more than four years, marking a significant comeback on grass, a surface she said was not easy for a return. Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion and 14-time major doubles winner with her sister Venus, served for the match and finished with an ace to set up match point.

Mboko, 19, said she was honoured to share the court with Williams and praised the partnership after the pair played with strong chemistry despite never having teamed up before. Williams also spoke positively about Mboko’s performance, saying she was able to hold up the team on important points and make the match feel natural. Afterward, Williams gave her own performance a modest C-minus grade, saying that considering the grass court and the long break from competitive play, she thought the outing was decent.

Their next opponents will be Canada’s Leylah Fernandez and Germany’s Laura Siegemund, who advanced to the second round with a close win over Alexandra Panova and Demi Schuurs. Fernandez had previously reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals last year alongside Venus Williams in a popular doubles run. In singles, Fernandez was eliminated by Britain’s Katie Boulter after their match, which had been suspended Monday night because of darkness, resumed on Tuesday. Boulter, the British player, recovered from losing momentum in the second set and from a break down in the third to close out the match and move on to face Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian.

The Williams-Mboko victory stood out as one of the day’s biggest storylines, blending a celebrated comeback with the rise of a young Canadian talent. Williams showed flashes of her trademark power and competitiveness, while Mboko impressed both her partner and the crowd with composed play in key moments. The result also sets up an all-Canadian spotlight in the next round for Mboko and a strong doubles challenge for the Fernandez-Siegemund team.