At 45 years old, Venus Williams made history at the Washington Open by becoming the oldest player in more than two decades to win a WTA-level match. Now, fans are wondering if 44-year-old Serena Williams could also return and create another record of her own. And it seems Naomi Osaka already has an answer.

At Roland Garros, Naomi Osaka defeated Laura Siegemund 6-3, 7-6(3) in the first round to advance to the next. Following the match, Osaka was asked about her thoughts on the possibility of Serena Williams returning to the court.

The 28-year-old said, “For me, that’s definitely something I would be really excited about, just to see her around the sites and playing matches again, I think, is really cool for tennis. I would be excited to see her outfits again, too. But also her playing, I think she’s one of the best players in the world, of course."

Even though Osaka did not directly say whether she believes Williams will return, there are still several reasons why fans continue to believe a comeback could happen. Rumors first started gaining serious attention last December.

At that time, reports revealed that Serena had applied for reinstatement to the ITIA’s Registered Testing Pool. That move made her eligible for a possible return to professional tennis.

Still, Serena later addressed the rumors herself on X. “Omg, y’all, I’m NOT coming back."

For now, 44-year-old Serena Williams appears happy, enjoying life away from tennis. She is currently working as a venture capitalist, growing her company, and partnering with Catalyst to support women and underrepresented founders.

At the same time, Serena also spends much of her time with her husband Alexis Ohanian and their two daughters, Olympia and Adira. Still, Naomi Osaka has believed for years that Serena could eventually return to tennis.

Naomi Osaka Opens Up About Watching Serena Williams Leave Tennis

Naomi Osaka defeated Serena Williams 6-2, 6-4 in the emotional final of the 2018 US Open to win her first Grand Slam title. The win also made Osaka the first Japanese player to win a major singles title.

Since then, the two stars have stayed closely linked in tennis history. Osaka also holds a 3-1 career record against Williams, including a victory in the semifinals of the Australian Open. Still, there has never seemed to be any tension or jealousy between them.

Back in 2022, Osaka was asked how it felt watching her childhood idol move toward retirement. To that, the four-time Grand Slam champion admitted, "To me, it feels definitely surreal."

"I’m almost like, I think she’s coming back. But you know, how are you just like? This can’t be happening or anything. So one of the moments for me, I am really grateful that she told everyone, so we at least got a chance to watch her."

For now, nobody knows whether Williams will ever return to professional tennis. But what we do know is that Osaka now shifts her focus back to the Roland Garros, where she is set to face Donna Vekić in the second round.

Do you think Serena Williams will eventually return for one more tournament run?

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Written by

Sauramita Debbarma

Edited by

Souvik Roy