Brad Gilbert believes players at Wimbledon are more concerned about the draw with Serena Williams present
WTA
Serena Williams created a stir in the tennis world by announcing her participation at this year's Wimbledon, and tennis analyst Brad Gilbert believes the WTA players are now a little more worried about their placement in the draw.
Speaking to NBC News Now, Gilbert expressed his excitement at the prospect of seeing Williams compete again while suggesting that other players in the draw will be worried.
"It's great to have Serena back. It's been 12 months since she played at Wimbledon and got hurt," said Gilbert. "Now, 127 other women are going to be extremely worried about the draw when it comes out next Thursday, potentially seeing her unseeded.
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"But I think it's a great move for her that next week at Eastbourne, she's going to play doubles with Ons Jabeur to get some practice on grass. I'm sure there's going to be some nervous women."
Williams has won the Wimbledon Championships seven times in the past. When asked if she could add an eighth title to her cabinet after a long lay-off, Gilbert said that for Williams, it's about getting started and that her draw will play a vital role.
"I would say her chances depend upon the draw," he added. " She could play the number one seed in the first round. I think more than anything, if she gets a decent draw, it's about getting a couple of wins, getting some confidence, and giving herself the opportunity to get to the second week. It's not about winning it at first, it's about getting started.
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"I think it's a great start for her to play doubles and get a couple of matches, but most importantly, it's going to be how her body reacts when you haven't played matches in a year, how she feels the day after getting a win."
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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