PhotoABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Serena Williams will make a surprise return to tennis at the Mubadala exhibition event in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, next Saturday, as she prepares for her Australian Open title defense in January. The decision to play in the United Arab Emirates should virtually confirm Williams’s participation at Melbourne Park. Williams will return with a match against the French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia. They will be the first women to compete in the Mubadala tournament, previously a male-only event. Advertisement Continue reading the main story“I am delighted to be returning to the court in Abu Dhabi for the first time since the birth of my daughter,” Williams said in a statement released by the tournament organizers on Sunday.

Source: New York Times December 25, 2017 01:18 UTC