After a year without playing a singles tournament, Serena Williams missed her return to the circuit: at 40, the American was beaten on Tuesday by the Frenchwoman Harmony Tan (115e) 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (10/7) in 3:11 in the first round of Wimbledon.
Posted at 6:07 p.m.
Seven-time Major champion on grass and ex-undisputed world number 1, Serena Williams, back down to 1204e world rank, had received an invitation to be able to enter the main draw.
Last year, she left the Center Court during the match, victim of a thigh injury. Tuesday, back on this same court, she went after a disjointed match at the end of which she bowed.
Sometimes borrowed, not always well placed, even a little lost on the court, not knowing whether to move forward or back, not always sure of herself or her shots, she was unable to impose over the length of the match his game so powerful and intimidating which made his strength.
She gave a lot of screams to try to evacuate the obviously enormous pressure that weighed on her shoulders, but there was too much waste in her game (54 unforced errors against 28 for her opponent).
So she sometimes resorted to attempts at intimidation, with particularly theatrical demonstrations on a few key points like the one that gave her the break and the possibility of serving for the match in the third set. But in vain.
Opposite, Tan, 24, made him run as much as possible, forwards, backwards, sideways.
Williams, visibly short physically, finished exhausted while the Frenchwoman, who was participating in her first Wimbledon, couldn’t believe it.
I am so moved that I cannot find the words… She is a Super starI watched it so often on television that for my first Wimbledon, it was… wow!
Harmony Tan
“When I saw the draw, I was very scared. It’s Serena Williams, a legend, I was wondering how to play against her and I thought that if I already won one or two games, it would be great, ”added Harmony Tan, whose coach, Nathalie Tauziat, today 54-year-old faced Serena Williams on the circuit.
The Frenchwoman could even have finished naked earlier, but Williams saved the first match point at 6-5 in the third set before taking the game into the super-tie break.
The American then quickly pulled away 4-0 and seemed to be heading for a victory, but she was unable to maintain her advantage and ended up losing.
In July 2021, injured in a thigh, she was forced to retire in the first round against Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich (100e world), when she was at the 8e WTA rank.
She had resumed competition to everyone’s surprise last week in doubles at Eastbourne, associated with the Tunisian Ons Jabeur (then 3e world singles). The duo had won their first two matches before forfeiting the semi-finals due to a knee injury to Jabeur.