Serena Williams partners with Victoria Mboko
Victoria Mboko will partner Serena Williams at the HSBC Championship. Sam Cardona-Norberg explains what Mboko brings to the pair.
Moments after Serena Williams kicked off her return to tennis with a straight-sets come-from-behind victory on June 9, she hugged her husband Alexis Ohanian and their two daughters, Olympia, 8, and Adira, 2.
What did her daughters say after their mother, one of the greatest athletes of all time, played her first professional game in 1,376 days?
“Adira wanted to go to the toy store and Olympia wanted to know what was for dinner,” Williams said.
The moment offered a glimpse into how Williams’ life has changed since the 23-time Grand Slam champion stepped away from tennis to focus on her family after the 2022 U.S. Open.
Four years later, when Williams decided to return, partnering Victoria Mboko as a doubles wildcard entry at the HSBC Championship in London, it was with flexible expectations and a new perspective inspired by her daughters.
“I’m not putting any pressure on myself. There was plenty of pressure,” Williams said earlier this week before the tournament. “That’s really important to me right now. It’s so many factors. It’s about having kids watch me play. Olympia is a little older and Adira is very young, but it’s still a moment like that. Being an athlete is the best thing you can be, the best place you can be, and to have the chance to do that one last time is kind of cool and exciting.”
There were moments on the court in her comeback match when Williams looked like a vintage Serena, with her scorching serves and powerful backhands. But there were also signs of how she had changed.
‘Don’t be too hard on yourself!’ Serena Williams gives herself a ‘C-minus’
Williams, known for his fierce competitiveness and occasional outbursts on the court, remained calm and elated in his comeback debut. She and Mboko exchanged smiles and laughs throughout the match, with Williams constantly encouraging her 19-year-old partner. Even when Williams made a mistake, he was able to shake it off in the moment and get back into the game, rather than letting his frustration derail the game.
In a match that lasted just over 90 minutes, Williams and Mboko defeated third-seeded Nicole Merichal Martinez and Erin Routliff 7-6, 6-2.
However, Williams wasn’t completely satisfied. Asked to rate his performance after the match, Williams self-deprecatingly replied, “I’m giving myself a C-minus.”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself!” Mboko further encouraged her. “It’s funny because there were moments during the match where I was like, ‘Oh, this isn’t going to work,’ and I was very self-critical. But I understand that, I feel like I was a little bit off her level, but I think it’s great to know that I have a lot of room for improvement and that I have the motivation to get better.”
Williams played with his trademark aggression while cycling through the middle of the court. The 44-year-old showed quick reflexes at the net and promise with her groundstrokes, including an outrageous backhand winner on the run that earned her a crucial hold late in the first set.
Williams and Mboko won 78% of their first serve points, with Williams hitting two aces in the final. On match point, she delivered a 116 mph serve that Melcher Martinez hit with her racket but could not return.
Mboko, who was scouted by Williams to play doubles last month, said he was grateful for the opportunity to play together.
“I don’t play doubles that much, but I think you can learn a lot by sharing the court, even if you’re still competing,” Mboko said. “If anything, I really had fun today and felt like we complemented each other really well on the court. I really liked our attitude on the court. We had the same mentality and that’s what I always look for in a partner. I was just having fun.”
Serena Williams gets ‘nervous’ standing ovation before game
Grass courts have been a historic success for Williams, who won seven singles titles and six doubles titles at Wimbledon. Before her comeback match, three years, nine months and eight days had passed since her last doubles victory.
“I was nervous, but I didn’t think about it too much,” Williams said. “I was just thinking about having fun. That’s what I did today, and I was just thinking about it. That’s it. I was nervous right before the game, about 30 minutes before, but after that I forgot about it.”
Williams received a standing ovation when he took the court before the game, and even more applause after the game. The fanfare is likely to continue during the remaining races at the HSBC Championship and the Berlin Open later this month. Williams reiterated on June 9 that she has not yet decided whether she will play at Wimbledon.
Her return at the Queen’s Club may not have seemed like a normal opening match to those in attendance, but Williams said for her it was just tennis.
“I think that’s the beauty of being an athlete and understanding the importance of polish and focus,” she said. “Once you go there and figure it out, it feels like it doesn’t matter what’s going on in the outside world. As long as you know what you’re there for, it really helps and makes a big difference.”
