Serena Williams vs. Maya Joint live tennis score, results, highlights from 2026 Wimbledon comeback

By | June 30, 2026
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WIMBLEDON, LONDON — Serena Williams is back competing at a grand slam for the first time in nearly four years as the 44-year-old makes her return to singles tennis against Maya Joint in the opening round.

Having retired from tennis at the US Open in 2022, the 23-time grand slam champion begins her quest for an eighth Wimbledon title when she takes on the 20-year-old Australian.

Williams, who is also playing doubles with her sister Venus this tournament, enters as a wildcard having only recently returned to the professional tour with doubles appearances on grass earlier this month at Queen’s and in Berlin.

Joint, currently ranked 53rd in the world rankings, described it as an “honor” to be drawn against Williams following the draw, but knows she needs something special to avoid a first-round exit for a second consecutive year.

Serena Williams vs. Maya Joint score

Set 1 2 3
Serena Williams  3 0 —
Maya Joint 6 1 —

Serena Williams vs. Maya Joint live updates, highlights from 2026 Wimbledon comeback

*denotes on serve

Williams* 3-6, 0-1 Joint – Joint breaks!

At 15-15, Williams runs to the net as she’s presented with the chance of an overhead smash and she takes it… the ball almost bounces up into the Royal Box! An ace follows to take her to 40-15 before double faulting. A long rally ends with Joint getting the better of her and we’re at deuce. Wow! Joint then unleashes a forehand winner from way beyond the baseline to bring up break point. She gets it! Not the start Williams needed in this second set.

Williams 3-6 Joint* – Joint wins first set!

At 30-30, Williams hits an awkward shot wide and hands Joint set point. She survives the first thanks to an overhit forehand by the Australian. Joint soon has a second set point and this time closes the game with a neat backhand. First blood to the youngster!

Williams* 3-5 Joint – Joint breaks!

Williams is more static than Joint, who shows her speed by running to the net with a simple forehand winner, 15-30. Joint has her chance to break as Williams sends an easy shot wide. First sign of emotion from Williams follows as she lets out a roar of excitement as her opponent hits long and takes it to deuce. The 44-year-old then double faults. Williams can only find the net on the next and is broken at the worst possible time!

Williams 3-4 Joint*

A couple of wide efforts from Williams sees her lose the first two points before she hits a stunning return off the serve, 15-30. The next return crashes the top of the net, 15-40. Williams stays in a long rally that Joint should have won but the seven-time champion gets a bit of luck with the ball striking the net cord and bouncing over. Joint keeps her nerve to see out the game. New balls please!

Williams* 3-3 Joint

Williams is just finding her groove with her big first serve, switching it up and keeping her opponent guessing. She races to 40-0. A thrilling rally requiring plenty of movement from Williams, which we haven’t seen too much of just yet, ends with Joint drilling a shot down the line. Williams’ response? Have another ace.

Williams 2-3 Joint*

Joint drills her first ace on her second serve but consecutive forehands going beyond the baseline once again see her go 15-30 behind. A double fault follows to bring up two break points. She survives both. A lovely backhand down the line at deuce leaves Williams rooted but Joint doesn’t take advantage on the next. She goes aggressive in the next two rallies to hold serve.

Williams* 2-2 Joint

It’s been a while since we’ve witnessed a Williams ace but there it is! Her first of the game takes her to 30-0. Joint then gets a point back on the board before overhitting beyond the baseline, 40-15. A fierce return from the 20-year-old then has Williams on the back foot, unable to respond. Williams holds again though as her opponent hits long.

Williams 1-2 Joint*

Joint delivers a few big serves of her own to get to 30-0. The longest rally of the match sees Williams go for an audacious backhand winner but it’s just wide, 40-0. Joint holds.

Williams* 1-1 Joint

A beautiful lob from Williams wins the opener as she delivers an early treat for the crowd! Two huge serves get her to 40-0 and then Joint fails to return the last in the court. A strong start from the American.

Williams 0-1 Joint*

First point Williams as Joint hits a forehand long. Williams’ volley at the net goes wide, 15-15. It’s 30-30 after an error each and no rally has lasted more than four shots just yet. Williams’ return off the serve then crashes into the net and then she over hits. If anything that’ll calm Joint’s early nerves to have a point on the board.

2:26 p.m. ET: Right on cue, both players arrive! A standing ovation from the crowd and a ball’s not been hit yet… you don’t see that too often. The Serena Effect.

2:20 p.m. ET: While all the build up to this match (and even the tournament) has been on Williams’ return, it’s going to be quite the story if Joint can get the victory today.

She has only reached the second round of a grand slam twice in her career, both coming at the US Open, and suffered defeat in the first round here last year.

“It’s an honor,” the American-born Joint said on Friday when asked about the prospect of facing the 23-time grand slam champion.

“I always dreamed about playing Serena Williams, and if you’d told me 10 years ago that I’d be playing her first round at Wimbledon, that’s just crazy.

“I have so much respect for her, and she was one of my idols growing up. I’m really excited to have the opportunity to play against her.”

MORE: Who is Maya Joint? The USA-born Australian 

2:13 p.m. ET: Alexander Zverev has won his match on Centre Court which means next up is Williams vs. Joint!

The court announcer has confirmed they’re due on court at 7:26 p.m. local time (that’s 2:26 a.m. ET for you folks in America!) 

1:35 p.m. ET: Hell yeah, we are!

12:50 p.m. ET:  So why is Williams returning? Having returned to the doubles circuit at Queen’s and Berlin earlier this month, Wimbledon chiefs boosted her return by offering her a wildcard entry.

“It’s not every day Wimbledon holds a wildcard for someone,” she says. “I can name probably a handful of people. I happened to be one of those people. I thought: ‘I should really take this opportunity.’ Who knows if I’ll ever make it here again? This could be it.

“I was like: ‘What’s wrong with me, Serena? What are you thinking? Are you nuts?’ Like: ‘You really should do this.’ People live to be an athlete. I have this great opportunity to showcase what I do, what I do best, I suppose. I think ultimately I was like: ‘That is pretty cool, so I should do it.'”

12 p.m. ET: It’s been 1,396 days since Williams last played in the singles. That came in a three-set defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round at the US Open. She admitted back then that she wasn’t retiring and instead “evolving.”

“Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution,” she said in a 2022 Vogue essay. “I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me.”

Her last visit to Wimbledon four years ago resulted in a shock first-round loss to Harmony Tan. Let’s see how she’s evolved since then.

11 a.m. ET: Hello, and welcome to day two of Wimbledon and the start of Serena Williams’ campaign.

It’s not 1999 (her first Wimbledon appearance). It’s not 2022 (her last Wimbledon appearance). The year is 2026 and 44-year-old Serena Williams, a 23-time grand slam champion, a seven-time winner at SW19, is playing singles tennis once again.

She faces 20-year-old Maya Joint in her return and we cannot wait to see how this game unfolds. Let’s get going!

MORE SERENA WILLIAMS NEWS:

How to watch Serena Williams in Wimbledon return

Serena Williams’ first match is most likely to be shown on ESPN’s main channel given the magnitude of the event but that is subject to change.

ESPN is the home of Wimbledon broadcasting with daily coverage from all 18 courts on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes (Spanish) and streaming on the ESPN App for ESPN Unlimited plan subscribers. 

Now you can watch ESPN without cable. Stream live NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, college sports, plus SportsCenter, First Take, and all your favorite ESPN shows—anytime, anywhere—only in the ESPN app.

The Tennis Channel will also be showing delayed coverage of select matches throughout the tournament. Along with ESPN channels, they can be found on streaming service fubo.

Fubo offers a FREE TRIAL for new subscribers, so you can try the service before you buy. Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox and 100+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)

What time does Serena Williams play today?

  • Date: Tuesday, June 30, 2026
  • Time: 2 p.m. ET | 11 a.m. PT (approx)

Serena Williams and Maya Joint have been scheduled as the third match on Centre Court on Tuesday, June 30.

The match has an estimated start time of 2 p.m. ET but this could be later depending on how many sets are played in the first two matches.

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