Tennis legend Serena Williams is set to make her highly anticipated return to the court at next week’s HSBC Championships, and she’ll retake the limelight alongside one of the sports rising stars.
Victoria Mboko, 19, will team with Williams in the women’s doubles and the Canadian has already expressed her immense admiration for her partner as they shared a picture at the Queen’s Club.
Williams, the 23-time grand slam singles champion, earlier this week confirmed she would be making her comeback at the west London venue where, last year, a women’s tournament was hosted for the first time since 1973.
The 44-year-old is a quarter of a century older than Mboko, who was voted WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2025.
On Thursday, Mboko posted a picture of the pair on the grass at the Queen’s Club alongside the caption: “An honor to share the court with one of the greatest athletes of all time this week.
“Even more excited to play doubles together! Tennis is pretty special.”
Mboko has a WTA 1000 title under her belt, coming from behind to beat Naomi Osaka on home soil at the Canadian Open last year.
She has also earned back-to-back top-10 wins for the first time in her career this year, beating World No 7 Mirra Andreeva and defending Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina on the way to the Qatar Open final in February, which she went on to lose.
Williams, meanwhile, has not played since the US Open in 2022, though she never outright used the word “retirement”, preferring to say she was “evolving away” from tennis.
Announcing her comeback, Williams said: “Queen’s Club feels like the perfect place to begin this next chapter.
“Grass has given me some of the most meaningful moments of my career, and I’m excited to be back competing on one of the sport’s most iconic stages.”
