Sam Stosur backed protege Maya Joint to beat returning great: "Serena's 44, hasn't had a match in four years so she's got nothing but question marks"

Tuesday, 30 June 2026 at 23:08

Maya Joint is being tipped by her mentor Sam Stosur to upset the Serena Williams return with the Aussie ace set to headline tomorrow against the 44-year-old at Wimbledon.

Joint last year perhaps would've been tipped to seal the win given that she was one of the fastest rising stars on the WTA Tour just only around a year ago albeit she has only won one game in recent months and that was at a lower level.

Stosur was regarded by Joint as her 'rock' during this spell as Joint attempts to drag herself from her slump in time for this tie. The Billie Jean King Cup captain is convinced the 20-year-old has enough to beat her pointing to the fact that she is 44 and hasn't had a match in four years.

Joint has also had a chat even with Ajla Tomljanovic who technically ended the career of Serena four years ago at the US Open and showed a calm demeanour to avoid the noise like Joint will hope to tomorrow. "Serena's 44 and hasn't had a match in four years, so she's got nothing but question marks to draw on, whereas Maya's been playing," said Stosur as per AAP.

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"We're all talking about Maya because we're all from from Australia -- but you can't tell me Serena isn't going to be nervous, too.

"I just watched her practice, Maya's hitting the ball great, playing well. This is a real chance; you see some people step up, and you see some sort of hide away and be cowed, and we've all seen (with her two WTA titles) that she can be the one who steps up. This is another chance for her to show that."

Needs to find the enjoyment again

But she added that in reality she was always going to have a downturn when it came to her vast rise and that she just needs to find the enjoyment in playing again. "I was trying to make sure she understood that nearly every player has been through what she's been suffering. She had such an incredible rise from 24 months ago, moving up from 600 in the rankings to the top 40 within a year, that it was all upwards then.

"It was always going to be a little bit of a challenge, potentially, to make that happen the second year round. She's not the first player to have a breakout year, and then players get to know you, you lose one match and you start questioning it.

"The biggest thing was for Maya to keep working on what she needed to and really find that enjoyment and joy in competing, joy in practice.

"Everyone's been through tough times in their career, but she'll bounce back, absolutely, no doubt in my mind, whatever happens in this match. Whether it's this week or next week or in a month's time, she'll be back to where she was.

Maya Joint competing at the US Open 2025

Maya Joint aims to topple the American queen.

"My message to her would be 'don't make it too complicated'. At the end of the day, it's still just lines and a ball that you have to hit in - so enjoy that, embrace that.

"There's going to be no bigger match than this for Maya - so go out there and love it."

But she also said that she wouldn't do what Serena is doing so while she is picking Joint, she has huge praise for a player she has beaten in a major final at the US Open in 2011.

"I can't imagine what Serena's doing," she laughed. "It's incredible, and I'm like 'good for you'.

"I cannot imagine putting on my match kit right now, going out to play, that's for sure! I think it's great for tennis, and we're lucky to see her playing out there again."

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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