Serena Williams shares video of herself on the practice court as she gears up for WTA Tour return

Serena Williams' fans have not had much reason to feel cheerful in recent times. But on Saturday (8 January), she took to Instagram to share the news that they have been longing for. The American is finally back on the tennis court.

Williams' latest video shows her on a hardcourt, armed with a host of tennis balls. Interestingly, both the Dunlop balls, the official balls of the Australian Open, as well as the Wilson balls, which are used at the US Open, could be seen.

The French Open is also played with Wilson balls, but with ones specially designed for optimum performance on the claycourts of Paris.

Screen grab from Serena Williams' Instagram story

Williams was last seen in action at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, battling Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the first round. With the score tied at 3-3 in the first set, the former World No. 1 was forced to retire with a hamstring injury.

Williams was also compelled to forego the following US Open and the 2022 Australian Open was supposed to be the stage of her return to competitive tennis. But the World No. 41 announced her decision late last year to pull out of the tournament, stating that she had not fully recovered from her injury.

A week ago, however, Williams dropped an important hint regarding a possible return to the WTA Tour soon. Commenting on her coach Patrick Mouratoglou's Instagram post, the 40-year-old expressed her desire to compete at the top level once again. She wrote:

"I love this!!!! Let’s get back out there"

Williams' latest Instagram story only helps reinforce that idea. The 23-time Grand Slam champion needs one more Major title to equal Margaret Court's record of most women's singles Grand Slam titles.

All the signs point to Serena making a final push at achieving this enviable record before considering her retirement.

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Serena Williams has been stuck on 23 Grand Slams for 5 years

Since winning the Australian Open in 2017, Serena Williams has not added to her tally of 23 Grand Slams

Serena Williams last lifted a Grand Slam at the 2017 Australian Open when she defeated her sister Venus Williams in the final. Five years and 20 Grand Slams later, she is still one behind Margaret Court.

Her run without a trophy in 20 Grand Slams is also the longest Major drought in her career. The longest Williams has ever gone without lifting a Slam before this was a run of nine Grand Slams between the 1999 US Open and the 2002 Roland Garros.

Interestingly, the win in 1999 was her first ever Grand Slam title.