Serena Williams set to make a return in August
What's the story
Serena Williams is all set to make her return to tennis at a WTA tournament in Kentucky next month. The new hard-court tournament will mark the return of Williams, who last played in February at the Fed Cup, before the sport was stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, the women's and men's professional tennis tours are scheduled to resume in August.
Tournaments
Kentucky event will begin on August 10
The tournament organizers recently announced that US Open champions Williams and Sloane Stephens are set to compete at the event, which is slated to begin on August 10 in Lexington, Kentucky. Notably, the Kentucky tournament was one of two new events confirmed by WTA chief executive Steve Simon last week. The revamped calendar will resume with the Palermo Open in Italy on August 3.
Return
'Can't wait to play US Open', Williams had said
Last month, the 23-time Grand Slam champion revealed that she is willing to take part in the impending US Open. "I really cannot wait to return in New York and play the US Open 2020," said Williams. "I feel like the USTA is going to do a really good job of ensuring everything is amazing and everything is perfect and everyone is safe."
Grand Slams
US Open to commence on August 31
Previously, the New York Governor confirmed US Open will run as per the original schedule (August 31-September 13). The French Open will follow the US Open, which is scheduled to be played from September 20 to October 4. However, there have been speculations that the two Grand Slam events could be suspended after the controversial Adria Tour.
Rankings
The revised WTA Rankings
Earlier, WTA announced temporary adjustments to the rankings for singles and doubles players. Under the revised system, a player's ranking will comprise the best 16 results in singles and best 11 results in doubles, based on the points earned between March 2019 and December 2020. Furthermore, Tour-level points added in 2020 will drop if the event is scheduled to be played after 52 weeks.
Serena Williams
How Serena Williams fared in 2020
In January 2020, Serena Williams clinched her first singles title when she beat fellow American Jessica Pegula 6-3, 6-4 in the final at the ASB Classic. In the Fed Cup, she beat Jelena Ostapenko 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-3) and lost to Anastasija Sevastova 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-7 (4-7). Nevertheless, Williams will vie for her maiden Grand Slam title since 2017, at the US Open.