Serena Williams Breaks Silence On Her Rumored Return To Tennis

Serena Williams is keeping fans on their toes about her possible return to tennis.

As one of the greatest players in women's tennis, many have been awaiting her comeback to the sport and had a glimmer of hope when Williams reportedly rejoined the anti-doping test pool.

However, fans' celebrations were cut short by Serena Williams' shocking response to the news.

Following widespread news of her return to tennis, Williams broke her silence with a blunt rebuttal on X. "Omg y'all I'm NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy," she shared on Tuesday, December 2. Despite her response, many believed she was teasing them.

"I'd believe this, but I know Venus wants to play with you one more time before she's done, so let a girl dream!!" a fan's reaction read. Another agreed, noting that the athlete probably meant she wasn't making a solo comeback but planning to return with her sister, Venus Williams.

"Then why did you apply to reenter the testing pool?" an X user wondered, with more fans echoing similar sentiments. "Serena, girl. This is what people say when they are indeed coming back," someone claimed.

A fellow supporter stressed that fans had decided that Williams must come back to tennis, so she should follow their will.

According to The New York Times, Williams had informed the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) about her desire to reenter the sport's International Registered Testing Pool. This was a necessary step for athletes who wished to return to the sport.

The news broke after Williams' name appeared on an updated list of players in that pool, dated October 6, 2025. A spokesperson for the ITIA, Adrian Bassett, confirmed Williams' inclusion on the list; however, he could not confirm her comeback.

"She has notified us that she wants to be reinstated into the testing pool. I do not know if this means she is coming back or just giving herself the option. All I can say is she's back in the pool," Bassett explained.

Fans' refusal to believe Williams wasn't making a comeback might stem from the significance of rejoining the registered testing pool. Becoming a member of the list meant that Williams would be subjected to the tennis' whereabouts rules.

The rules involve accepting the possibility of random drug testing and remaining in a specific place for an hour a day. Athletes must provide their whereabouts at a given time every day of the year to the ITIA, something someone uninterested in a comeback wouldn't bother with.

Additionally, anyone who reenters the testing pool must be in the pool for six months before they can play in a tournament. Those on the pool typically consisted of the top 100 men's and women's singles players, elite doubles and wheelchair players, and players wishing to return to competition after a long hiatus.

Williams recently opened up about the parts of her fans weren't used to seeing on the court in a new interview. The Blast shared that she described herself as "the most non-serious person" she knows, noting that she frequently cracked jokes to deal with negativity.

"In tennis, you can't really be yourself, which sounds weird, but you have to keep a veil up. You can't be too vulnerable," Williams said about hiding her true self. She also reflected on her body image issues and how she once compared herself to other female athletes.

According to Williams, when she started her career as a teenager, she had a voluptuous body compared to the athletes her age. It was hard not to compare herself to them and feel like she wasn't meeting the tennis industry's standard of beauty. However, she no longer feels insecure about her curves.

Williams' candid reflections come months after she sparked mixed reactions for admitting to using a GLP-1 injection to lose weight. The Blast reported in September that her former coach had reacted to the news with confessions about their past.

Patrick Mouratoglou revealed that he and Williams had frequently butted heads over her weight gain after she welcomed her first child, daughter Olympia, with her husband Alexis Ohanian. He explained that she thought he was body shaming her, while he was only concerned about her performance.

When asked if he wished Williams had begun taking the GLP-1 weight loss drug years earlier, Mouratoglou replied, "I'm not the type of guy who's looking back and having regrets. But, yeah, if she would have been in this position physically, the results would have been better."