Could Serena Williams be nearing a return to tennis? She is about to become eligible

Although Serena Williams last competed at the 2022 U.S. Open, the 23-time Grand Slam champion never formally announced her retirement.

Instead, Williams famously said she was “evolving” away from tennis — careful wording that some interpreted to mean a return remained possible.

And while Williams, 44, has never publicly changed her stance, recent developments have created intrigue about her future.

On Monday, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said Williams is set to become eligible for reinstatement on Feb. 22.

That date would mark the requisite six months since Williams signed up with the ITIA to rejoin the drug testing pool.

When reports about Williams re-entering the testing pool surfaced in December, she denied any plans to return to the court.

“Omg yall I’m NOT coming back,” Williams wrote on social media. “This wildfire is crazy.”

But in less than two weeks, Williams will no longer be considered a retired player by her sport’s anti-drug agency.

Her older sister, 45-year-old Venus Williams, returned to competition last summer after more than a year away.

“I keep saying to my team: The only thing that would make this better is if she was here. Like, we always did everything together, so of course I miss her,” Venus said at the D.C. Open in July.

“But if she comes back, I’m sure she’ll let y’all know.”

Venus’ comeback included her 25th career appearance at the U.S. Open, where she took 11th-ranked Karolina Muchova to a third set before losing in the first round last summer.

In the doubles tournament at Flushing Meadows, Venus and Leylah Fernandez won two matches before losing in quarterfinals.

Serena Williams, widely considered the greatest women’s tennis player of all time, last won a major championship in 2017. Her last match was a third-round loss to Ajla Tomljanović at the 2022 Open.

With News Wire Services