Tennis superstar Serena Williams will make her competitive return to the court at next year's Australian Open, tournament director Craig Tiley has revealed.
Williams, 36, hasn't played since giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia, although appears to be in the frame to hunt for a 24th Grand Slam title, with Tiley saying her return was "very likely".
"She's got her visa, she's entered, she's practicing and she's probably just got to find a bit more space for a bigger entourage," he told Australia's Herald Sun newspaper.
"There's no question that she'll be ready in our view and she wants to break a record that is Margaret Court's."
"We'd be pretty excited about the possibility (of her coming)."
The news will be good for New Zealand fans, with Williams a target of the ASB Classic in 2018, where she competed this year for the first time.
The Australian Open begins on January 15 at Melbourne Park.
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