New mum and defending champion Serena Williams could make her comeback at next year’s Australian Open after she was named in the tournament’s entry list, released by the organizers of the event on Friday.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion, who gave birth to daughter Alexis Olympia five months ago is expected to make her much publicized return to action after confirming her entry in the year’s first Major, famously called the ‘Happy Slam’.
Both the WTA and ATP No. 1s, Simona Halep and Rafael Nadal will be back in Melbourne, but the focus will be primarily on Serena, who bagged this year’s title while having entered the first trimester of her pregnancy.
Confirming the news, tournament director Craig Tiley said in a statement: “Last year’s tournament broke all of the records and we look forward to welcoming back new mum Serena as she attempts to equal Margaret Court’s 24 Grand Slams.”
“We are definitely a family-friendly event and many players including reigning champion Roger Federer travel with their children to Melbourne so we remain optimistic that she will return.”
Former champions Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka, triple Grand Slam winner Andy Murray, top-ten players Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic are also expected to make their respective comebacks in the competition after being sidelined for months because of injuries.
“We have been in regular contact with Andy Murray, Kei Nishikori and Stan Wawrinka, who are all set for the Aussie summer,” said Tiley.
“They will all have lower rankings meaning there’s a real chance we’ll finally see a breakthrough from one of the rising stars like Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem or David Goffin.”
The tournament is scheduled to be held from January 15-28 at the iconic Melbourne Park.
