Serena Williams returned to tennis for one reason: she needed summer plans. In her dominant return to the court, it didn’t even look like the tennis icon had left for almost four years as she and Victoria Mboko, her doubles partner, recorded a straight-set triumph in the first round of the HSBC Championships. Though the fans were thrilled to see Serena finally back in action, it was still unclear why she chose a tournament where she had never played before for her first match in four years. When asked about this, the American came up with a humorous reply that left the crowd in stitches.

“I had nothing better to do,” she said during her post-match interview. “I was tired of sitting at home. My kids are out of school for the summer, so why not?”

Serena and Mboko handed a 7-6, 6-2 defeat to the duo of Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez in the first round at the Queen’s Club. While the match was an evenly-matched contest during the first set, Serena and Mboko made light work of their opponents in the second. Their second-set dominance signaled they were serious contenders.

Williams had nothing but praise in store for Mboko after the clash. The 44-year-old credited her partner for playing brilliantly on important points, which helped them steer the match away from their opponents.

“It was so fun. I had so much fun playing with Vicky. She really was able to hold up the team and play big on the big points, and I could really rely on her. We’ve never played together, but it just felt so natural playing with her, so it was actually really fun,” she added.

In just 108 minutes, Williams and Mboko dismantled their opponents. They were strong from the get-go, as it didn’t even feel like they were their first-ever match as a doubles pair. Serena clocked speeds of over 100 mph on her serve and held it rather easily.

Williams and Mboko raced to 3-0, then held serve despite a costly double-fault that let opponents back to 4-3. The set would eventually go down to a tiebreaker, where Serena and Mboko clearly were the better team. They clinched the breaker 7-2 to take the lead in the match.

The second set was one-sided. Williams and Mboko once again got off to a flying start and got a break in the third game. They improved on their serves as well and made sure not to allow their opponents to break back. The duo soon gained their second break of the set over Routliffe and Martinez to take a commanding 5-2 lead.

Serena fired a lightning-fast ace, a reminder of her form from years past. She was strong with her serve once again as she and Mboko took the set to claim a remarkable victory. The match always looked to be in their balance, and they didn’t really let it go out of their grasp.

Mboko also had a few words to say about her partner after the match and highlighted how honored she is to team up with one of the biggest icons of women’s tennis.

Victoria Mboko is privileged to team up alongside Serena Williams

“First of all, I feel very honored to play with you, Serena,” she said during the post-match interview. “It’s such a privilege to play beside you, and I had a lot of fun if anything. We really did that out there. I’m so happy to be playing beside you, and we’re going for more.”

Forming a doubles pair with Serena was memorable for Mboko, who has idolized the American since childhood. She is likely to continue as the 44-year-old’s partner at the Berlin Open next week.

After comfortably moving past the first round, Serena and Mboko are set to take on the pair of Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund in the quarterfinals of the single-elimination tournament. The latter have reached the stage after their hard-fought 6-2, 2-6, 11-9 victory over Alexandra Panova and Demi Schuurs.

Fernandez and Siegemund will test whether Serena Williams’ rust has truly vanished.