Serena Williams returns to Wimbledon and makes a stunning return to singles action at the age of 44 after a nightmare day for British players at the Championships.
Williams will play Australia’s Maya Joint in her first singles match since the 2022 US Open, having only returned to the sport earlier this month and playing two doubles matches.
The 23-time grand slam champion and mother of two admitted she will be “nervous” as she makes her long-awaited return, and said she will have “no expectations” when she plays the world No 87.
Elsewhere, wildcard Katie Swan sealed the first win for a British player of this year’s Championships after a devastating opening day on Monday. British wildcard Arthur Fery joined her, after overcoming a spectacular collapse from a furious Damir Dzumhur, and there was also a win for Jacob Fearnley.
Wimbledon has also seen its biggest shock of the tournament so far, with qualifier Otto Virtanen knocking out fourth seed Ben Shelton in a match tiebreak. Virtanen saved match point as he won 11-9 in the decider, and will now play Fery in the second round.
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Ben Shelton blows Wimbledon opportunity in ‘one of the toughest losses of my career’
Ben Shelton described his Wimbledon first-round defeat to Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen as “one of the toughest losses” of his career.
The fourth seed became the biggest casualty of the first round as he lost a fifth-set tiebreak to the world No 140, losing 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(8), 6-2, 7-6 (11-9) after more than four hours on the court.
The 23-year-old Shelton arrived at Wimbledon ranked at a career-high fifth in the world after winning the title at the Wimbledon warm-up event at Stuttgart. He was viewed as one of the contenders for the title, or at least tipped to reach his first grand slam final after landing on the opposite side of the draw as world No 1 Jannik Sinner, who beat him in last year’s quarter-finals, and 24-time grand slam winner Novak Djokovic.
Alexander Zverev wins third set against Alexander Blockx
In a nervy tiebreak, featuring many double faults, Alexander Zverev surges clear of Alexander Blockx to win the third-set decider 7-5 and move a set away from the second round.
If Zverev can close this out in four sets, Serena Williams will be making her comeback within the hour.
Toby Samuel falls to Jakub Mensik in five sets
A five-set thriller has just come to a close on Court 3, with Britain’s Toby Samuel narrowly missing out on a place in the second round.
He played a brilliant match against in-form 15th seed Jakub Mensik, the French Open semi-finalist, but ultimately fell in a match tiebreak: 7-5 3-6 3-6 6-3 6-7(7).
The pair embrace at the net before Mensik roars with relief. What a match.
When is Serena Williams playing doubles at Wimbledon with Venus?
The Williams sisters last played doubles together at the 2022 US Open. Venus Williams, who is 46, plays sporadically but still sometimes accepts wildcards into grand slams.
Together, Serena and Venus have won six Wimbledon doubles titles, a record they share with Suzanne Lenglen and Elizabeth Ryan, and their last title came in 2016.
With a combined age of 90, the Williams sisters will play their first-round doubles match on either Thursday 2 July or Friday 3 July at the start of the women’s doubles tournament.
The Williams sisters will play the unseeded South American pair Camila Osorio and Solana Sierra in the first round. Osorio, from Colombia, and Sierra, from Argentina, will be playing as a duo for the first time.
Alexander Blockx wins second set against Alexander Zverev
It’s going to be a late night on Centre Court at this rate! Alexander Blockx, the dangerous Belgian, has won a second-set tiebreak to level the match against Alexander Zverev, the French Open champion.
That will delay the start to Serena Williams’ match, which is next on Centre.
Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina given scare by Lois Boisson
Elena Rybakina survives a scare against Lois Boisson, the Frenchwoman who enjoyed a remarkable run to the Roland Garros semi-finals as a wildcard last year.
Boisson was dangerous, forcing a third set, and Rybakina benefitted from the Frenchwoman slipping in the third set and requiring a medical timeout.
Rybakina’s serve got through it. She wins 6-4 1-6 6-3 and the second seed advances.
Ben Shelton is the first top-10 seed to fall
Ben Shelton reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last year and had a real opportunity to progress and landing in the opposite side of the draw to both Jannik Sinner, who beat him last year, and Novak Djokovic.
Otto Virtanen, meanwhile, will play British wildcard Arthur Fery in the second round. That’s an excellent opportunity for both players to reach the third round of a grand slam for the first time.
UPSET ALERT! Ben Shelton crashes out of Wimbledon!
A major upset on Court No 2 as qualifier Otto Virtanen knocks out fourth seed Ben Shelton in a match tiebreak!
Shelton had match point himself, but found the net. Virtanen survived, then won the match himself when Shelton put a forehand long. Virtanen wins 6-3 3-6 6-7 6-2 7-6 (11-9) in the upset of the tournament so far.
Shelton was an outside contender in the wide-open bottom half of the draw. Virtanen continues his run from qualifying with his fourth win in a row at SW19!
Who is Maya Joint?
The 20-year-old Australian is currently ranked 87th in the world, with a career-high ranking of 28, but has lost her last 11 tour-level matches.
A former champion on grass at Eastbourne last year, Joint is making just her second appearance at Wimbledon having yet to make it past the first round, while she has only reached the second round of a grand slam on one occasion.
She was born in 2006, when Williams was already a seven-time grand slam champion. The American won a further 16 grand slam titles in her lifetime.
Jacob Fearnley seals third British win on day two
That’s a lovely win for Jacob Fearney, who prevails from two sets down to beat Alex Michelsen 3-6 4-6 6-2 6-3 6-2.
After breaking into the top 50 after a rapid rise a couple of years ago, and taking a set off Novak Djokovic on Centre Court, backing up his breakthrough has been a struggle for the 24-year-old Scot.
Before Wimbledon, he had won only two matches on tour during an injury-hit season and he has dropped out of the top 100. This is a boost to his confidence.
