Serena Williams refused to let a scorching heatwave keep her from Wimbledon’s Aorangi Park practice courts as the 23-time Grand Slam champion prepares from her highly anticipated return to the Championships’ main draw next week.
The 44-year-old tennis icon accepted the tournament’s final wildcard last week, and is set to return to SW19 for the first time in four years – and after having publicly stepped away from the sport at the 2022 US Open.
Since announcing her return last month, Williams has only played two doubles matches, but has been a frequent fixture at Aorangi in a bid to tune up ahead of returning to singles action.
This week has seen her practice with former world No 3 Maria Sakkari, and cross paths with fellow Grand Slam winners including Stan Wawrinka and Novak Djokovic.
Her arrival at the tournament is arguably the most high profile of all of the tournament’s big-name competitors, with even her compatriot Ben Shelton pausing his own preparations to watch her hitting session with Sakkari on Tuesday.
On Wednesday amid 33-degree-Celsius temperatures, Williams was the picture of focus as she trained with her coaches Jarmere Jenkins and Rennae Stubbs, and her Wigan-born hitting partner David Quayle.
Serena Williams was back in action in SW19 as she took to the Wimbledon practice courts
The 44-year-old announced her shock return to the sport ahead of entering the doubles draw at Queen’s Club
Quayle has been part of her set-up since May, when he flew to Florida as part of secret preparations for her shock entry into Queen’s as rising star Victoria Mboko’s doubles partner.
Williams has looked in fine form since her return to grass on the practice courts, but a question mark remains over one detail of her preparation – whether Williams has continued to use GLP-1 jabs managed by telehealth company Ro, of which she became a vocal paid spokesperson for last year.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion’s husband Alexis Ohanian sits on the company’s board and was an early investor. As recently as this February Williams, the company’s celebrity face, featured in a Super Bowl advert for the brand and its Zepbound tirzepatide jab, which is also marketed under the name Mounjaro.
Williams, who is said to have lost close to two and a half stone, or 34 pounds (15kg) using the drug, previously called her challenge to lose weight following the birth of her two children ‘the one opponent (she) couldn’t beat’.
It remains unclear as to whether Williams has continued to use to the drug, which also treats symptoms of diabetes, with her publicist declining to comment when asked by the Atlantic.
But although GLP-1s are not banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), they are one of the drugs under ongoing investigation as to whether they might be classed as performance-enhancing in the future.
Williams travelled with her team to Aorangi Park on site at Wimbledon for another day’s work
The seven-time Wimbledon champion will learn her spot in the draw this weekend
Williams has previously been outspoken on her use of weight-loss medication through her role as an ambassador for Ro
Williams looked to cool off in the searing London heat as temperatures soared towards 37 degrees Celsius
Although Williams would be the first athlete to publicly use a GLP-1 if she was still using Zepbound, tennis has an existing relationship with weight-loss jabs, with semaglutide Ozempic a surprising sponsor at last year’s Canadian Open.
Speaking to Professor Olivier Rabin, WADA’s head of science, Daily Mail Sport learned that the organisation’s study into the GLP-1s was extended in 2026.
‘The WADA List Expert Advisory Group has discussed their status, as well as other substances of the same class,’ the statement shared with the Athletic from the agency in June read.
‘Semaglutide and tirzepatide were added to the Monitoring Program to track patterns of use in sports in and out of competition. The Monitoring Program includes substances which are not on the Prohibited List, but that WADA wishes to monitor in order to detect potential patterns of misuse in sport.’
But as much as the weight-loss jabs can work as advertised and see users lose a significant amount, there can be troublesome side effects, including dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea.
‘Looking at the side effects, they may outweigh the benefits, if I may use this pun,’ Professor Rabin told Daily Mail Sport in September 2025.
Williams will learn her draw for next week’s tournament on the weekend, as well as her opponents when she teams up with her former partner – and sister – Venus for doubles action.
But her ability to get a feel for live points on grass has been stymied somewhat since her comeback, with Mboko suffering an injury during a singles match at Queen’s which forced their withdrawal ahead of the second round.
After partnering with Karolina Muchova to take part in the doubles in Berlin, Williams was defeated in straight sets in the first round.
