Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash believes Serena Williams could still beat ’75 per cent of the tour’ despite losing on her return to professional tennis.
Williams, the winner of 23 Grand Slams and seven Wimbledon titles, returned to SW19 after accepting two wildcards from the All England Club.
The legendary American showed glimpses of her best in what was her first professional singles contest in 1,396 days, but ultimately suffered a 3-6 7-6 3-6 defeat to Australia’s Maya Joint.
Williams fought back well after going a set and a break down, but the 44-year-old eventually faded to allow Joint to reach the second round at SW19 for the first time in her career.
Williams is still to compete in the women’s doubles with her sister Venus, but her future plans beyond Wimbledon remain unclear.
But Cash, a winner at SW19 in 1987, is confident that Williams will keep playing and believes the American could be a ‘real handful’ if she builds on her promising first outing since 2022.
‘I was a bit cynical and very curious about what was going to happen in this match,’ Cash said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
‘What we saw is two people playing very good tennis and Maya being able to handle the pace of Serena: not just the odd shot but it was constant. Serena played an incredible level.’
‘I was very cynical because we’ve seen Venus make these comebacks over the last couple of years, and she’s barely won a match and I thought, ‘oh don’t tell me Serena’s going to come out and play this poor standard of tennis’.
‘I was kind of cringing, hoping that wouldn’t be the case and it absolutely wasn’t. Serena played very, very good tennis and I reckon she would have beaten 75 per cent of the tour the way she played today, even more, but Joint was equal to it.
‘It was incredibly high-standard tennis and, wow, if Serena plays this way and she wants to play some more tennis, she is going to be a real handful.’
Former British tennis player Annabel Croft was equally impressed by Williams’ capabilities and is confident that fans will see the seven-time Wimbledon champion play again.
Asked if Williams may compete at the US Open in a few months, Croft said: ‘I think so. This was her first match and that’s what is so jaw-dropping about it. If that is the level of your first match back, imagine if she plays a bit more?
‘I guess the factor will be if her body can stand up to it. How is she going to feel tomorrow and had she won today, then she’d have to keep backing up matches.
‘But I think now I’m looking at her today and thinking ‘how on earth did we doubt that she wasn’t sure if she was going to come back to playing singles?’
‘We all thought she was just going to be playing doubles with Venus, maybe at the US Open.
‘Now I’m looking at it thinking, no, you have been secretly practising for weeks, months; smacking balls and you are as fit as you can possibly be and so prepared for this comeback at Wimbledon. There is no question about that.’
Williams did not speak to the media after her first-round defeat, but said in a brief statement: ‘It was really great to be back at Wimbledon. I never expected to be here.
‘The atmosphere was amazing. Walking out was amazing. I definitely relished it and missed it and enjoyed the moment more than anything.’
She is scheduled to be back in doubles action tomorrow with Venus against Solana Sierra and Camila Osorio.
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