Battle breaks out between Serena Williams and anti-doping authority before Wimbledon comeback: 'I hate it'

Serena Williams has created a storm even before her return to Wimbledon. The 23-time Grand Slam champion is making news for calling drug test rules "unprofessional" as she questioned the need to declare her location to doping officials.

The tennis great made a return to the sport at 44, playing doubles at Queen's Club and Berlin recently after a four-year hiatus. She will be playing her first singles match since 2022 in the Wimbledon first round on Tuesday against Australia's Maya Joint.

Serena slams 'unprofessional' anti-doping rules

But her return to the court has led to unwanted stress for the US tennis star, who is now expected to provide her location and a specific time period every day during which she can be tested. The location and time have to be shared with the anti-doping officials.

A player would get sanctioned if he or she refuses once or fails to update their whereabouts three times within 12 months.

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The rules were different when Williams last played as a professional four years back. Unhappy with the constant stress, one of the biggest tennis players of all time, Serena, said that she "hates" the new anti-doping 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," Williams told reporters at Wimbledon on Sunday.

"It's unprofessional. I hate it. 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.

She added that the authorities need to make a change to the system.

"There has to be a different way to make it reasonable because that's just unreasonable. That was a big reason why I didn't want to come back either, because it's just so hard."

ITIA defends itself against Serena accusations

The International Tennis Integrity Agency, however, has defended itself in the face of criticism, claiming that no changes to "Whereabouts rules" have been made in the last few years, and while it's challenging, the rules are not meant to "trip up" any player.

“Following Serena’s comments, it is worth clarifying the Whereabouts rules. 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,” an ITIA spokesperson said.

“There have been no changes to the Whereabouts rules in the last few years. 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.”

While the whereabouts rules appear extremely harsh, they are currently followed by all professional tennis players. However, with Williams now becoming a mother of two and a venture capitalist, it's understandable for her to find it difficult to manage the requirements.