Two simple words at the end of a tweet June 7 said it all: ‘‘Serena’s back!’’
And Venus is, too.
Yes, as Serena Williams told the world less than two weeks ago, the most successful tennis-playing siblings in history are returning from lengthy layoffs right on time for Wimbledon, where they just so happen to have won nine of the last 11 women’s singles championships.
For Serena, it will be her first Grand Slam tournament — and only her second event — since she took home a second consecutive title from the All England Club last July. Her nearly yearlong absence resulted from a series of health
issues, including two foot operations and blood clots in her lungs, that she said left her depressed and ‘‘on my deathbed.’’ Venus, meanwhile, was sidelined by a hip injury from January until June.
When Wimbledon begins Monday, all eyes will be on them.
‘‘I feel like we’ve been on a similar road together,’’ Serena said at a tuneup tournament last week in Eastbourne, England. ‘‘Her road hasn’t been as arduous or as long as mine, but I know what she’s been through coming back. We’ve been really enjoying our time just getting back together and practicing next to her and looking over and seeing her play so well. I’m like, ‘OK, I’ve got to do better.’ ’’
There are, to be sure, other players — Rafael Nadal, Novak Djoko-
vic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Caroline Wozniacki and Li Na, among others — worth tracking during the fortnight. But the biggest curiosity will be how the Williams sisters will do.
Part of the interest stems from wondering how much longer they’ll be around. Venus turned 31 on Friday, and Serena will be 30 in September.
‘‘Whenever they enter a Grand Slam tournament, it’s double the excitement and double the intrigue that they bring to the sport,’’ said Chris Evert, who won 18 Grand Slam singles titles. ‘‘They also just bring a different level of tennis, as far as the power and the emotional content.
‘‘It would be monumental, in my mind, if Serena pulled off a win. I personally don’t know how it’s
humanly possible for someone to take a year off like that and have gone through what she’s been through physically with her ailments. . . . But knowing Serena and the way she’s come back
before, you can’t count her out.’’
Evert is one of only five women in tennis history who have won more major singles championships than Serena’s 13. The others are Margaret Court (24), Steffi Graf (22), Helen Wills Moody (19) and Martina Navratilova (18). Among active players, Serena is No. 1 and Venus No. 2 (seven).
Indeed, it’s remarkable to examine the measurable ways in which Serena and Venus have dominated women’s tennis across the years. That’s why Serena is seeded seventh at Wimbledon, despite being ranked 26th; Venus is seeded 23rd, despite being ranked 33rd.
Not only has Venus won five Wimbledon titles and Serena four since 2000, but they also have produced four all-in-the-family finals at the All England Club during that span. They’ve played in a total of eight all-Williams Grand Slam championship matches, with Serena holding a 6-2 edge.
At Wimbledon, Venus is 68-9 and Serena 57-7. No other woman in the 2011 draw has more than 27 victories there.
Overall, Serena has been to 16 major finals, Venus to 14. No one else in the draw has reached more than four.
As seven-time major champion John McEnroe put it: ‘‘I wouldn’t minimize their chances.’’
The interest generated by the sisters’ rise to the top of the
tennis world is pointed to as the reason for the U.S. Open’s decision to move the women’s final to prime time in 2001. Venus beat Serena for the title that year, and nearly 23 million viewers tuned in to the CBS broadcast, giving their match the largest TV audience of any program that night, including a college football game between Notre Dame and Nebraska.
The last major tournament — the French Open — was the first Grand Slam event since 2003 without Serena or Venus, and chaos reigned. It became the first French Open in which none of the top three seeded women reached the quarterfinals, and it left some looking forward to when the sisters would play again.
Serena lost in the second round at Eastbourne to Vera Zvonareva, the woman she beat in the Wimbledon final last year. Venus lasted a round longer.
They’re not merely happy to be back, though. They want to contend for more titles.
‘‘I always believe in myself when I go on the court,’’ Venus said. ‘‘And I’m not just here to look good; I’m here to win every match I’m in.’’
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