Serena Williams has constantly been in the headlines ever since making her much-awaited comeback to tennis last month. Many have hailed her willingness to return to the tour at the age of 44. Although she has won just a single match since her return, Williams has been quite competitive, and her strong playstyle has stunned multiple younger players. One of her biggest admirers is none other than Novak Djokovic, who recently spoke about her greatness.

“What she’s (Serena) doing now after having 2 kids and being away for so long is a gift for us, for anyone who loves tennis, for anyone who loves sports, for anyone who admires Serena’s legacy,” he said on CBS Mornings. “Whatever happens, it doesn’t matter if she wins or loses; it’s already epic.

“So I told her personally in Wimbledon, and it’s truly and honestly felt in my heart. I want her to feel happy and joyful on the court because, in a sense, to some extent, I know how it feels. Still trying to push at that age when you have achieved everything you possibly can.”

As two of the greatest players to grace the tennis court, Djokovic and Serena share a warm friendship.

Many have been wanting to see the two in mixed doubles action for years. But following Serena’s indefinite hiatus in 2022, it looked like the two would never form a pair. However, the hope of seeing them play together has risen once again following the 44-year-old’s unexpected return.

Serena has so far participated in two women’s doubles draws and a singles draw. She had made her return at the HSBC Championships last month, and this was where she had also claimed her first and only victory of the season so far. She and Victoria Mboko had participated in doubles action against Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez.

Despite it being their first match together, Serena and Mboko delivered a superb performance and recorded a 7-6, 6-2 victory. But they wouldn’t manage to go beyond this in the tournament after the Canadian suffered a knee injury during her singles clash at the Queen’s Club. As a result, Serena had no choice but to pull out mid-way through the event.

She was then in doubles action at the Berlin Open. This time, the American played alongside Karolina Muchova, but the two wouldn’t get past the first round. The pair of Erin Routliffe and Giuliana Olmos knocked them out with a 6-4, 6-4 victory.

Serena then made her return to singles at Wimbledon by taking the last remaining wildcard for the draw. She faced Maya Joint in the first round, and it proved to be quite an intense match. Despite putting in a commendable effort on the day, the veteran came up short and was sent packing after a 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 defeat.

Things soon got worse for Serena as she had to pull out of the doubles draw due to a knee injury, which she sustained during the clash against Joint. Notably, she was supposed to play doubles alongside her sister Venus Williams for the first time in 10 years at the SW19, but excited fans couldn’t catch them in action.

Many were critical of Serena after the unexpected withdrawal and felt that her comeback bid was taking away opportunities from younger players. However, it was Djokovic who had come to her defense on that occasion as well. He had stated that people were being overly critical of Serena for no reason and had asked them to just enjoy seeing her play.

Novak Djokovic came to Serena Williams’ defense amid mounting criticism after Wimbledon exit

“People need to cool off a little bit with the judgment and the criticism and everything,” he had said during his post-match press conference after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round of Wimbledon. “Let’s just enjoy the greatness and who she is and what she represents to the sport. Her wanting to give it a try and just come back it’s an incredible gift for our sport.”

Serena had shared a disturbing injury update following her withdrawal from the doubles draw at Wimbledon. She had shared an image of four syringes, which were used to drain fluid out of her body after the match against Joint.

She had taken Joint to her absolute limit, ensuring that it wasn’t one-way traffic. The Australian herself looked to be exhausted as the match came to an end after two hours and 22 minutes.

Now the main question is: When will Serena be back in action? The injury doesn’t appear to be very serious, but there are no updates about her return so far. With the hard-court season about to commence, she can be eyeing the Montreal Masters that will commence on August 2. Or it can even be the Cincinnati Masters, where she will get to play in front of her home crowd for the first time in years.