Serena Williams calls anti-doping system ‘gruelling’ and says ‘I hate it’

Serena Williams of the United States, left, arrives to practice one day ahead of the start of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

LONDON — Serena Williams took aim at tennis’ anti-doping system on Sunday ahead of her Wimbledon return, calling the system “unprofessional” and “unreasonable.”

The 44-year-old Williams returned to the testing pool before she could announce her comeback to professional tennis and was asked Sunday about her experiences complying with the rules.

“It’s gruelling. They changed the rules now. I didn’t know some of the rules. So apparently if you miss a test outside of your window, it still counts as missed. I’m like, I guess I can’t go pick up my kids,” said the seven-time Wimbledon champion, a mother of two. “It’s unprofessional. I hate it. I think it’s necessary, but I think a lot of the stuff, if I want to go places outside of my window, I should be able to go without having it count as a missed test.”

Williams’ first match at the grass-court Grand Slam since 2022 will take place Tuesday when she faces Maya Joint as part of her tennis comeback. She returned to the sport this month in a doubles match at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament.

The anti-doping protocol was in the spotlight last week when Marketa Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, was suspended for four years for refusing an anti-doping test, the latest high-profile player sanctioned.

Players are required by the International Tennis Integrity Agency to provide their daily “whereabouts” for no-notice testing.

Williams described it as “unreasonable.”

“That was a big reason why I didn’t want to come back either,” she said, “because it’s just so hard. I mean, my life is busy, I run a company, I run a VC company, I travel the world. I have children. It’s like I could be in so many different cities so many different times.”

The ITIA, in response to Williams’ comments, told The Associated Press the rules have been the same for several years.

“If a tester is unable to reach a player during their allocated hour, then it may well be a ‘strike,’ and three failures could lead to a charge. If a tester is unable to reach a player outside of their allocated hour, it is not considered a strike,” it said of the whereabouts rules.

In 2023, Jenson Brooksby was given an 18-month suspension after an independent tribunal determined he missed three drug tests within the span of a year.

Under anti-doping rules, athletes can be penalized without a positive test if they have three “whereabouts failures” within 12 months.

“There have been no changes to the whereabouts rules in the last few years,” the ITIA added in its statement. “We understand the system can seem challenging, but it is there to protect players, not to trip them up. If players are unsure or have questions, we would welcome a conversation with them directly or through their agents.”

Williams, who has previously criticized the frequency of anti-doping testing, said she’s willing to comply and has “always have been very clear about what I do.”

“Just getting in that routine of, all right, first of all, learning the new rules, then just getting back and reporting every day,” she said. “I guess now for 24 hours where I’m going to be is just different — at least for me. I don’t know if that works for everyone else.”

AP Sports Writer Andrew Dampf contributed to this story.

Ken Maguire, The Associated Press