Serena's ex-coach says 23-time Grand Slam winner will come out of retirement only on one condition: ‘She will only if…’

It’s been more than three years since US tennis legend Serena Williams announced her retirement from the sport, having made the final appearance of her illustrious 27-year professional career in the US Open that year.

And while the 23-time Grand Slam champion has given no indication of coming out of retirement since then, there are those who believe that a return to the court, in a professional capacity that is, could be on the cards. Especially after Serena’s name was back on the list of players registered for the drug testing pool, as per the International Tennis Integrity Agency.

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Serena’s former coach Patrick Mouratoglou, however, believes that the tennis icon will come out of retirement on one condition only – if she believes she feels she has a chance to compete with the very best and has a realistic chance of winning.

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“I think when Serena wants something and when she puts her heart in it, there are not much things that are impossible. So I guess, if she thinks about her comeback, she will only (do it) if she thinks she can compete with the best,” Mouratoglou told The Express.

“Otherwise, she will not. That’s not her mindset. That’s never been her mindset,” he added.

‘She’s in super shape’: Serena’s former coach

Mouratoglou, who had coached Serena from 2012 until her retirement in 2022, feels that she certainly has to physique to compete with the very best.

“Maybe this is something that crossed her mind because she’s in super shape, as everybody saw,” the 55-year-old continued.

“She looks like she’s back to being a top athlete after being a mother. So maybe it crossed her mind, and maybe she opened that opportunity. But to open an opportunity and to do it, there is, I think, a long way to go, so I guess we’ll know in a few months if it happens,” he added.

The 44-year-old mother of two daughters had recently made headlines for losing 31 pounds with the help of a weight-loss drug after the birth of her second child. And she had recently been training to compete in a half-marathon in early 2026, with a leg injury briefly halting her preparation.