Serena teases Wimbledon return as coach teams up with Halep

After her long-time coach Patrick Mouratoglou stated he will work with Simona Halep on a “full-time” basis, Serena Williams hinted she could return to action at Wimbledon on Thursday.

Williams, 40, hasn’t played since suffering a ruptured right hamstring in a first-round match at Wimbledon last June.

The announcement that Mouratoglou, Halep’s coach since 2012, will partner up with her cast doubt on the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion’s future.

In an Instagram video with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers uploaded backstage at a Bitcoin conference in Miami, she appeared to hint she would participate at Wimbledon.

“We’ve been talking about my comeback and he’s been hyping me up and getting me ready for Wimbledon. Can’t wait!” said Williams.

Rodgers replied: “Wimbledon? What about the US Open?”

“Wimbledon is before the US Open! I have to play Wimbledon first!” responded Williams.

Her ranking has dropped to 246 after she skipped the Australian Open earlier this year to focus on her comeback.

Since partnering with Mouratoglou, Williams has won 10 of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles, and she recently announced that she has given him permission to coach another former world number one, Simona Halep.

“Excited for a new chapter. Let’s get to work,” tweeted Halep, a two-time Grand Slam champion who had been without a coach since splitting with Darren Cahill last September.

Halep had asked Mouratoglou if he might teach her while she was practising at his academy in southern France before travelling to Indian Wells last month, according to Mouratoglou.

Given his commitment to Williams, the Frenchman stated it was “out of the question” at the moment.

“A few weeks later, I had a conversation with Serena, and the door opened for me, at least short term, to work with someone else,” he said on social media.

Romanian Halep is currently ranked 20th. She rose to world number one for the first time in 2017 and won Roland Garros the following year and Wimbledon in 2019.

Also Read

Serena Williams reacts to Will Smith’s slap Chris Rock at Oscars 2022

Serena Williams was taken aback when Will Smith struck Chris Rock on...