LONDON — Maya Joint’s cheering section at Wimbledon for her match of a lifetime against Serena Williams will be small.
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The Michigan-born Aussie said she’ll have her tennis coach, fitness coach, agent and … her mom. That might be it.
Joint, 20, was drawn to face the seven-time Wimbledon champion in the first round and knows she’ll need to tune out what likely will be a stadium — probably Centre Court — full of fans hoping to see the 44-year-old Williams launch a successful singles comeback.
“I’m expecting big serves and big forehands,” Joint said. “I’m expecting shorter rallies, just from how hard she hits the ball. I’ll have to be really ready for the first couple of games, try and get a good start to maybe catch her off guard a little bit.”
Her record in Grand Slams is two wins, seven losses with both victories coming at the U.S. Open. Meanwhile, Williams won seven major titles — completing a career Grand Slam in the process — before Joint was born in 2006.
“I have so much respect for her. She was one of my idols growing up, I’m just really excited to have the opportunity to play against her,” Joint said.
As a qualifier at Flushing Meadows in 2024, Joint beat Laura Siegemund before losing to Madison Keys.
Joint said the match against Keys in Arthur Ashe Stadium gave her a flavor of what’s to come at Wimbledon.
“When I saw that she got a wild card to get back into singles, there was always a part of me wanted to experience playing against her,” Joint said.
Ranked No. 53, she made her Wimbledon debut last year, losing in the first round.
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Williams could have been drawn with any top player on tour, but in Joint she’ll face an opponent who has struggled for much of 2026. At one point Joint lost 10 consecutive matches before a first-round victory at a clay-court WTA 125 event in Croatia this month.
The young player, who represents Australia through her father, sees an opportunity.
“Any match is winnable. I’ve gotten a lot closer in my past couple matches, I’ve been getting closer in the score,” she said. “Serena is still an amazing player, so I’m sure it’s going to be a difficult match but I also think that I have a chance to win.”
If anyone knows what it’s like to face Williams in a high-pressure scenario, it’s Ajla Tomljanovic, who beat Williams in the third round at the 2022 U.S. Open in what was Williams’ farewell to tennis at the time.
“I’m excited. It’s going to be such a fun experience for Maya,” Tomljanovic said Friday at Wimbledon. “Maya can go into it really feeling like she’s got nothing to lose and so much to gain, but at the same time there’s that true belief that she can win, and she’s in a good position to win if she plays her game.”
Joint saw Tomljanovic after the draw was announced. Did the youngster ask for advice from the last woman to beat Williams in singles? Nope.
“I saw her this morning — she didn’t ask me anything, but that’s Maya for you,” she said. “She’s quite introverted but the more time you spend with her she’s very quirky, she’s funny. She’s very professional. She likes to stay in her bubble with her team.”
Still, Joint said Tomljanovic told her “that I can beat anyone.”
Since Williams had been out for nearly four years, a reporter Friday asked Joint who would be the favorite in the match.
“That’s a difficult question. I try not to think of what other people think will happen,” she responded. “Tennis is a crazy sport, anything can happen. It just depends who’s better on that day, so we’ll see Tuesday.”
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She added: “Maybe I can win a couple of people over.”
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
