Serena Williams was initially sceptical about accepting a singles wild card for Wimbledon before talking herself into it after realising "people live to be an athlete".

Almost four years after her most recent singles match, which came at the 2022 US Open, Williams will face Maya Joint in the first round on Tuesday.

Williams, who has won the Wimbledon singles crown seven times, went out in the first round on her last appearance at SW19 in 2022.

Among all former women's singles grand slam champions, only Tracy Austin, Martina Navratilova and Kim Clijsters have ever had a bigger gap between consecutive major appearances in the Open Era than Williams, as she has missed the last 14 slams.

Williams will also play doubles alongside her sister Venus, with the siblings having won that event on six occasions. They will face Solana Sierra and Camila Osorio in the first round.

Speaking at her pre-tournament press conference on Sunday, Williams admitted she thought long and hard about whether she should accept the invitation to play singles, having already committed to the doubles event. 

"I thought I should really take this opportunity. Who knows if I'll ever make it here again. This could be it," Williams told reporters.

"I was like, 'What's wrong with me, Serena? What are you thinking? Are you nuts? You really should do this'. 

"People live to be an athlete. I have this great opportunity to showcase what I do, what I do best, I suppose. Ultimately, I think that is pretty cool, so I should do it."

 @serenawilliams pic.twitter.com/Y6ZDLpx0BX

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 28, 2026

Williams' only two first-round losses at Wimbledon have come on her last two appearances at the event, in 2021 and 2022 (19 wins).

Despite Williams' long absence, Roland-Garros champion Mirra Andreeva said this weekend that she was glad to avoid the 45-year-old in the first round of the draw. 

And Williams understands those comments, saying: "Respectfully, it's not surprising simply because it's like the big four coming back.

"I mean, Novak [Djokovic] is still here, but no one would want to play him in their first round. I can't think of anyone that would want to do that.

"No one knows how my game may or may not have evolved, what to expect. They don't know much. Those types of opponents are always very difficult to play against."