It took until the eighth game of her first Wimbledon match in four years for the Serena Williams of old to materialise.
Break point down against 20-year-old Maya Joint, Williams let out a primal roar as her opponent went long. She obviously still had her trademark champion’s desire – why else would she have gone to the effort of making a comeback after four years away? – but this was it in the flesh. The Centre Court crowd recognised it and erupted with her, spurring her on.
