Serena Williams Wins in First Tennis Game Since Giving Birth
Serena Williams made an impressive return to court on Thursday, March 8, after winning against Kazakhstan's Zarina Diyas.
The crowd welcomed Williams with a standing ovation when she entered the Tour court for the first time since she won her record 23rd Grand Slam title at the 2017 Australian Open. She was already eight weeks pregnant at that time.
On her first singles match since then, the 36-year-old American beat Diyas with a score of 7-5 and 6-3 in the two-round game for the Indian Wells Masters.
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Following the game, Williams admitted that she was a "little rusty." "It definitely wasn't easy but it was good," she shared.
Her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, watched her win from the crowd. They share daughter Alexis Olympia, who was born on Sept. 1.
Talking to the audience and press after the game, Williams shared her thoughts over her impressive win against Diyas. "It was incredible. It's been over a year and a kid later," she shared. "I'm just out here on this journey doing the best I can."
Prior to her return to professional tennis, she has played in two minor matches — an exhibition game in Abu Dhabi last December and a doubles rubber to represent the US Fed Cup team against the Netherlands in February. This year, Williams opted out of the Australian Open as she thought her body was not yet ready for a huge tournament.
Williams first announced her comeback game on Instagram. "This whole month I am playing tournaments in California and Florida- both my home states," she wrote. Interestingly, her first game happened on the same day as International Women's Day. In the same post, Williams encouraged her fans to support her and her equity foundation by wearing her golden S pin.
"My comeback could not have come on a better day and I decided I wanted to do something different let you all be a part of my long journey back," she added.
Williams' coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, said in a statement that the tennis player has a lot of expectations for herself this year, particularly to win more grand slams.
