Serena Williams turned Centre Court into a time machine for a few minutes on Tuesday night, as 15,000 people enjoyed a glimpse into her glorious past.
It is true that, for much of this three-set defeat at the hands of Maya Joint, Williams was a lacklustre imitation of the woman who once struck fear into the hearts of every opponent.
But there was a moment, when she saved a match point and stole the second set on a tightrope-walking tie-break, when we could have been back in 2016.
With an early exit on the cards at 5-6 down, Williams found two huge serves down the “T”, then gusted her way through a gritty rally to level the match at a set apiece.
And as the crowd celebrated the extension of their evening’s entertainment, Williams finally showed us some emotion. Until that moment, she had been plodding vacantly around the court, like a woman on heavy medication. But now she clenched her fist and roared, as if awakened from her slumber.
At her peak, Williams was as pitiless as a raptor. She would have feasted on Joint, who was vulnerable in the aftermath of that sudden volte-face. But we are talking about a 44-year-old confronting a 20-year-old: the sort of age disparity you are more likely to find in a university seminar than a professional tennis tournament.
Another twist in the narrative was soon upon us. Williams held game point for a 3-1 lead in the deciding set. She softened Joint up with a bludgeoning forehand, earning a juicy short ball that only just cleared the net. Trotting forward to apply the coup de grace, she lined up that picture-perfect backhand – and blared what should have been an easy putaway inexplicably over the baseline.
Well, it would have been inexplicable once. But Williams had not played a competitive singles match since losing to another Australian, Ajla Tomljanovic, at the 2022 US Open.
In the circumstances, it was remarkable that she made this 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 defeat so competitive. According to the marking system used by Wimbledon’s “Tennis Insights” team, Williams’s performance level through the middle of the match comfortably exceeded the average score in the women’s draw here, which stands at 7.56 out of 10. But a slow start and a limp ending brought her overall score down to 7.16: a respectable showing rather a stellar one.