Tennis news

Serena Williams publicly attacked tennis's anti-doping system ahead of Wimbledon, calling it "unprofessional" and "unreasonable."

Her comments came as she prepared to return to Grand Slam singles competition for the first time since the 2022 US Open.

The remarks arrived in the same week that the ITIA announced Vondrousova's four-year ban for refusing an out-of-competition test.

Williams had been competing in doubles at Queen's Club and Berlin as part of her comeback before the Wimbledon wildcard was confirmed.

Her criticism adds to growing debate about the consistency and fairness of the ITIA's anti-doping enforcement across player profiles.

Naomi Osaka defeated Karolína Muchová in the Bad Homburg Open final to claim a WTA 500 grass-court title.

Frances Tiafoe won the Halle Open (ATP 500) title, boosting his Wimbledon seeding ahead of the Championships.

Francisco Cerundolo won the Queen's Club Championships (ATP 500), his first title on grass.

Linda Nosková claimed the Berlin Open (WTA 500) title on the women's grass-court circuit.

These results completed the pre-Wimbledon grass swing, setting the form guide ahead of the year's third Grand Slam.

Ugo Humbert defeated Zizou Bergs in the Eastbourne International men's singles final (ATP 250).

Tatjana Maria won the Eastbourne women's singles title (WTA 500) in her final grass-court warm-up before Wimbledon.

The Eastbourne results concluded the final pre-Wimbledon tune-up event of the grass-court swing.

Jack Draper had reached the Eastbourne semi-finals as part of his injury comeback before subsequently withdrawing from Wimbledon.

Eastbourne's WTA event is a 500-level tournament, making Maria's title one of the more significant grasscourt wins of the week.

An independent tribunal suspended former Wimbledon champion Markéta Vondroušová for four years after she refused an out-of-competition doping test at her home on 3 December 2025.

The tribunal found there was 'no compelling justification' for her refusal, and her ban runs until 21 June 2030.

Vondroušová cited 'months of physical and mental stress' and concerns about the doping officer's identification as reasons, which the tribunal rejected.

The ITIA stressed that refusing a test carries the same starting sanction as testing positive, to prevent doping by evasion.

Vondroušová's legal team said they would review the full verdict before deciding whether to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Wimbledon confirmed on 21 June that Serena Williams, 44, had been offered and accepted a singles wild card.

It is her first singles appearance at a Grand Slam since the 2022 US Open, nearly four years ago.

Williams had already returned to doubles at Queen's Club, partnering Victoria Mboko to a first-round win.

She and Venus Williams also received a doubles wild card together, having won six Wimbledon doubles titles as a pair.

Williams faces Maya Joint in the first round and has previously won seven Wimbledon singles titles.

Francisco Cerundolo beat Tommy Paul 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3 in the longest final in Queen's Club history.

Cerundolo became the first Argentine player to win the Queen's Club title.

Donna Vekic defeated Emma Raducanu 6-0, 7-6(6) to win the women's WTA 500 title at Queen's — her fifth career title.

The combined ATP/WTA 500 event ran 6–21 June at Queen's Club in London.

Paul was the 2024 Queen's champion going into the final as favourite.

Serena Williams, 44, accepted the final ladies' singles wild card for Wimbledon 2026, announced by the All England Club on 21 June.

It will be her first singles match at a Grand Slam since falling to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round of the 2022 US Open — nearly four years away.

She had already accepted a doubles wild card alongside sister Venus Williams, marking their first Wimbledon doubles pairing in over a decade.

Williams began her comeback in doubles at Queen's Club in June 2026, then played with Karolina Muchova in Berlin before accepting the singles invite.

A seven-time Wimbledon singles champion with no current ranking, Williams could face any top seed including world No. 1 Sabalenka in the opening rounds.

Wimbledon confirmed on 21 June that Serena Williams, 44, received a singles wild card for the 2026 Championships.

It is Williams' first Grand Slam singles appearance since the 2022 US Open, nearly four years ago.

Williams enters with a 98-14 career record at Wimbledon, two wins shy of 100 on the London lawns.

She is drawn against 20-year-old Maya Joint in the first round.

Williams and sister Venus will also play doubles together at Wimbledon, reuniting one of the sport's most storied partnerships.

Tiafoe defeated compatriot Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-4 in the Halle final to claim his maiden ATP 500 title.

He becomes the first American champion in the history of the Halle Open.

Tiafoe started 2026 outside the top 30 and had lost all four previous ATP finals above the 250 level.

The title came weeks after one of what he called the toughest losses of his career at Roland-Garros.

The win elevated his Wimbledon seeding prospects heading into the grass-court Grand Slam.

Noskova defeated third-seed Jessica Pegula 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in the rain-delayed Berlin Open final.

It is her first grass-court title and second WTA singles title overall, at age 21.

The victory propelled Noskova into the WTA top 10 for the first time, becoming the new Czech No. 1.

Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka lost to Pegula in the semifinals, leaving the final without the world No. 1.

On the same day, Marie Bouzková won the Nottingham Open — marking the fourth time two Czech women have won WTA titles on the same day.