Venus Williams beat sister Serena in the 2000 semi-finals – the first of six matches they played against each other at Wimbledon/Getty Images
American superstars Serena Williams and Venus Williams will return to Wimbledon action together after they were handed a wildcard to compete in the women’s doubles.
Neither sister is included on the list of singles wildcards, although there is one remaining spot still to be given.
Serena, 44, made her comeback at Queen’s last week, four years after playing what many expected to be the final match of her career at the 2022 US Open.
The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, whose tally in that count includes seven Wimbledon titles, is playing doubles in Berlin this week with Karolina Muchova and will continue her comeback on the Grand Slam stage alongside Venus at the All England Club.
Five-time Wimbledon singles champion Venus, 45, has lost all seven of her singles matches this season, but won a doubles match alongside Britain’s Katie Boulter at the Madrid Open in April.
Former British number one Dan Evans has not been given a wildcard for the men’s singles main draw in what will be the final tournament of the 36-year-old’s career.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who is also retiring at the end of the season, has been handed a place, along with Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov.
French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska has been rewarded for her Roland Garros run with a wildcard for the women’s singles. Wimbledon begins on Monday, 29 June.
Who else has received a wildcard?
Six British players – Cameron Norrie, Emma Raducanu, Katie Boulter, Jack Draper, Jan Choinski and Francesca Jones – are ranked high enough to receive direct entry into the singles draws.
On Tuesday, wildcards were given to four British men’s players, with two more spots to be confirmed over the next fortnight.
Men’s singles wildcards: Grigor Dimitrov, Jacob Fearnley, Arthur Fery, Jack Pinnington Jones, Toby Samuel, Stan Wawrinka
Six of the wildcards in the women’s draw were given to British players.
Women’s singles wildcards: Maja Chwalinska, Harriet Dart, Alicia Dudeney, Hannah Klugman, Mika Stojsavljevic, Katie Swan, Mimi Xu
The wildcards are chosen at the discretion of the Wimbledon committee.
The tournament said wildcards are usually offered “on the basis of past performance at Wimbledon or to increase British interest”.
What the Williams sisters mean to tennis – and Wimbledon
Venus and Serena Williams have won the Wimbledon women’s doubles title six times/Getty Images
The Williams sisters changed the tennis landscape when they arrived as talented teenagers in the 1990s.
With their powerful game styles, skill sets and athleticism, the pair blew opponents off the court as they swept up the game’s most prestigious prizes.
Between them, they have won 30 Grand Slam singles titles – including 12 Wimbledon victories. They have also won six women’s doubles titles together at SW19 – their first in 2000 and most recent in 2016.
Now, three decades since their initial impact on the sport, they are reuniting on the biggest stage.
The pair have not played together since the 2022 US Open, which was Serena Williams’ final tournament before she “evolved away” from the sport.
Venus Williams, who turns 46 on Wednesday, has continued to play sparingly on the tour in recent seasons, including at this year’s Australian Open where she was given a singles wildcard.
She became the second oldest woman to win a WTA Tour-level singles match by beating 23-year-old Peyton Stearns at last year’s Washington Open.
Asked at the recent French Open about her sister’s comeback, Venus Williams said she was “not worried” about how Serena would play.
“What I will tell you is she will not hit for four months then grab her racquet and come out and hit a tonne out of the ball – it’s incredible,” Venus Williams told TNT Sports.
“The quality of her stroke is obviously there. She is a natural – she is very tenacious.”
Dan Evans has reached the Wimbledon third round on three occasions/Getty Images
Evans has initially been overlooked for what he hopes will be a swansong appearance in the singles main draw.
Unless he is given one of the two remaining spots over the next fortnight, the former world number 21 will have to go through qualifying.
Evans is at least guaranteed a farewell to the tournament as he has been given a doubles wildcard alongside 2023 Wimbledon boys’ champion Henry Searle.
Earlier this week, Evans said it would have been a “classy gesture” to have received a Queen’s singles main-draw wildcard – where he also missed out.
He was part of the team that secured Britain’s first Davis Cup title in 79 years in 2015 and also won two ATP Tour-level titles.
“I think what some people have forgotten is I’m a professional tennis player and I wouldn’t be playing if I wasn’t prepared or ready to play or fit to play,” Evans said about the Queen’s decision.
“I don’t feel like I’ve been taken seriously.”
Wawrinka, who has never gone past the Wimbledon quarter-finals, is a beneficiary of the wildcard system, as is 2014 semi-finalist Dimitrov.
A devastated Dimitrov left Centre Court in tears last year after being forced to retire injured when two sets up on world number one Jannik Sinner in their fourth-round match. Sinner went on to win the title.
Other notable names to miss out on men’s singles wildcards are 2021 runner-up Matteo Berrettini – who has a strong chance of moving into the main draw as an alternate anyway – plus 2022 finalist Nick Kyrgios and veteran French player Gael Monfils.
Former world number six Monfils, 39, is also retiring at the end of the season, while 31-year-old Kyrgios has a doubles wildcard alongside Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik.
SOURCE: bbc.com