Serena Williams cleared to return to tennis by ITIA after four-year hiatus

Nearly four years after announcing she was "evolving away from tennis," Williams, 44, has been removed from the ITIA's retired players list. Her name has appeared on the reinstated list since 22 February, indicating she is once again eligible for competition.

The update follows Williams' completion of the International Registered Testing Pool (IRTP) requirements. Under ITIA protocol, players must be available for out-of-competition drug testing for at least six months before returning to sanctioned events.

As a result, the 23-time Grand Slam champion is now eligible to enter tournaments. Williams has not publicly commented on a potential comeback, but her former coach, Rick Macci, has suggested a return to competition could be forthcoming.

"She's training with lots of sparring partners â- guys," he told L'Equipe. "She's also played with Alycia Parks, a good friend of hers in South Florida. So I have no doubt about it (her comeback). I always thought she would come back from time to time to make appearances with Venus in doubles.

"But we're not just talking about doubles here ⦠she's going all out. If she didn't think she could compete with the best and win matches, she wouldn't do it. It's 100% certain she'll dive back into competition."

The first big event on the calendar following her reinstatement is the Indian Wells Open with the tournament starting on March 4, but she doesn't appear on the wildcard list just yet with organisers telling Front Office Sports they have received "no word or indication from Serena and her teams regarding any plans to return".

After Indian Wells, the Miami Open is next on the calendar with the second leg of the Sunshine Double running from March 17-29.

Williams is an eight-time winner in Miami and organisers would sell an arm and a leg to have her in the main draw.

After the Miami Open, the focus turns to clay with the WTA 500 Charleston Open up first, or she could wait for the WTA 1000 events in Madrid (April 23) and Rome (May 5).

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