Serena Williams loses on her long-awaited singles comeback as Maya Joint defeats the 23-time Grand Slam champion on Centre Court at Wimbledon 2026

Serena Williams saw her long-awaited comeback end in a three-set defeat to Maya Joint in the first round at Wimbledon.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion was playing her first singles match in almost four years and could not secure a fairytale result as the Aussie world number 87 claimed a 6-3 6-7 6-3 victory on Centre Court.

”I really don’t know what to say right now, wow, I don’t know what just happened to be honest,” Joint told the BBC in her post-match on-court interview.

”I didn’t get much sleep last night, I was up to like 2am just thinking about it. Walking out, I forgot the warm-up, my legs weren’t moving, so I really don’t know how I got off to a good start.

”She has such an aura, such a legend, this court has so many huge names that have played on it.

”I’ve been dreaming about this moment since I was a little kid, so this is pretty crazy.”

It was the 44-year-old Williams who looked the more assured early on and she was unfortunate not to convert one of the two break points she carved out in the fifth game of the opener.

The 20-year-old Joint gradually overcame the butterflies and broke for a 5-3 lead before serving out from deuce on her second set point.

The Aussie, who sat at a career high of 28 in the rankings as recently as February, had won just one of her previous 14 matches across all levels, but belied that sort of form with more swashbuckling tennis to snare the early break in Set 2.

Williams finally summoned that champion’s spirit as she twice hit back from a break down before saving a match point and forcing a decider by edging a tie-break by an 8-6 scoreline.

The players exchanged breaks early in the third before Joint motored clear with Williams seemingly running out of gas.

The young Aussie kept it together to serve out from deuce on her third match point in two hours and 22 minutes and set up a second-round clash with Alexandra Eala.

It is not to be for the great Serena Williams.

The 23-time Major winner’s first singles match since 2022 ends in defeat.

The young Aussie Maya Joint manages to shut out the noise as she served out from deuce on her third match point to disappoint many fans inside Centre Court tonight.

Serena leans on her big first serve to keep her slim hopes alive with a hold to 30.

Maya must now keep her nerve for what would be the biggest win of her career in terms of star names.

Maya is one game away from defeating one of her childhood heroes.

The Aussie shrugs off a double fault to consolidate with a hold to 30 and even the great Serena Williams will find it hard to turn it around from here.

Oof.

That’s not a good sign for Serena fans.

The American coughs up a double fault and is found wanting throughout as Maya brings the heat on the return to break to love.

Williams looks like she needs a second wind and you wonder if there’s much left in the tank.

Rather surprisingly, Maya moves ahead in the ace race with her eighth of the night as she hits the front with a dominant hold to 15.

Joint tries to manufacture an immediate reply and sizzles away a crosscourt forehand to threaten at 15-30.

Serena lands an ace down the T in response and earns game point when the Aussie drags a poor forehand, low into the net.

The American can’t convert and she screams in disappointment when she bunts a forecourt backhand way, way long.

Maya then earns break point with a magnificent crosscourt backhand return and sees a miss-hit forehand loop in to bite right back.

Maya breathes a sigh of relief as Serena’s forehand return down the line misses by a millimetre at 30-30.

The Aussie can’t find the forehand down the line to seal the deal but deploys a velvety dropper to seize control at deuce.

The veteran American keeps the 20-year-old hanging around and the frustration gets the better of the world number 87 who goes too big on back-to-back forehands to surrender her serve.

There’s a defiant roar of delight from Williams as she hangs tough for a hold to 30 after Maya had threatened to make things interesting from 40-0 down.

Serena immediately looks to soar upon the wave of momentum and unloads on a rasping crosscourt return before snaring two break points when Maya miscues a make-able forehand.

The Aussie responds with a blistering winner down the line off that flank and then makes deuce when Serena dumps a tame forehand into the net.

The 20-year-old quickly resets from there and digs out a morale-boosting hold to seize the scoreboard advantage in the decider.

That is champion’s stuff!

Serena saved match point just prior to the change of ends and cannoned down another huge serve to earn set point.

Joint battled hard in the ensuing rally but it was the young Aussie who blinked first with a strike just long to allow the 23-time Major winner to take the breaker 8-6 and take us into a decider.

Joint produces some magical tennis to move 6-5 up and earn match point.

The pressure is on Williams but she bangs a huge serve down the T and then surges onto the short ball to thud away a forehand winner.

Serena zaps a stunning forehand winner down the line on the run but then hangs her head in disappointment after missing a more routine one to leave it all square at the change of ends.

Joint puts aside the disappointment from the previous game to rampage through a love hold and take us into a breaker.

Joint can’t hide her frustration as she fails to find the island with a couple of make-able returns after Serena had coughed up triple break point with a pair of untimely double faults.

The American somehow survives a fourth BP from deuce and eventually grits out a dogged hold to guarantee herself the minimum of a breaker.

Maya comes up clutch on her first serve from 0-15 down to settle some of her internal alarm bells and halt some of the momentum surging against her.

Serena hits the front at the business end of the second set!

The seven-time Wimbledon champion surges to a hold to 15 as that sense of deja vu of seeing the American hit back from what looked like certain defeat reverberates around Centre Court.

Serena squeals in dismay as she drags a backhand into the net to follow up a tame return that went the same way.

It allows Maya to claw her way ahead from 15-30 down, but Serena keeps the pressure on and forces a desperate block long.

The American attacks the second serve with more aggression to snare break point and then pulls level once more with a delicious drop-shot-volley combo.

Ouch.

Serena’s bubble is immediately burst as Maya resists the raw power and when she forces Williams to move, she usually gains the initiative.

The 44-year-old American drags a plus-one on the stretch into the alley to cough up triple break point and buckles on the second with a loose strike long.

Serena looks to up the ante at 15-30 thanks to a backhand volley but Maya responds with superb winners off both flanks.

The American presses to deuce and the charges to her right to dig out a wonderful crosscourt pass and conjure up break point.

The mood suddenly changes inside Centre Court and the former World No.1 sizzles a forehand down the line to break back!