Wimbledon 2023: Venus Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, is one of the athletes who have been handed a wild card to compete at Wimbledon this year.
Williams has played little in recent seasons and was sidelined for six months due to a hamstring injury suffered in Auckland during the first week of the year, with the five-time Wimbledon singles champion only returning to action last week at a grass-court event in the Netherlands.
The 43-year-old defeated Camila Girogi at the Rothesay Classic in Birmingham on Monday, her first victory over a world top-50 opponent since 2019. Williams, who was battling a knee injury during that victory, is now returning to the singles draw after only competing in mixed doubles at Wimbledon last year.
Williams is one of seven players nominated to the women’ singles wild card list, which also includes former British No. 1 Heather Watson and two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist Elina Svitolina from Ukraine, with one more still to be confirmed.
Svitolina reached the quarterfinals of the French Open on her return to play last month after the birth of her baby Skai in October, but she was beaten on grass in Birmingham this week.
Katie Boulter, who won the Nottingham Open last week, is one of five British players given wild card entries in the ladies’ draw, which also includes Jodie Burrage, Harriet Dart, Katie Swan, and Watson.
Dart and Watson will also participate as wild cards in the women’ doubles, while Burrage will partner Emily Appleton. The remaining three women’ double wild card berths were also guaranteed to go to all-British partnerships, with the last two still to be revealed.
In the men’s draw, David Goffin, who was ousted in the quarter-finals by Cameron Norrie last year, has been handed a wild card to return, while Liam Broady is one of five Brits to be awarded berths in the year’s third Grand Slam tournament.
Ryan Peniston returns after making it to the second round last year, while Jan Choinski, George Loffhagen, and Arthur Fery make their main draw debuts.
The 2023 Wimbledon Championships will be held at the All England Tennis Club from July 3 to 16, with Novak Djokovic defending his men’s singles title and Elena Rybakina defending her ladies’ title.
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