Maya Joint’s craziest moment of her tennis life to date didn’t come on a court.The 20-year-old Australian, born in the U.S. was doing what players do before a big match at a Grand Slam: Standing in a corridor waiting for their opponent. On a warm Tuesday evening in southwest London, they duly arrived, in the shape of 23-time Grand Slam singles champion and transcendent star of sports Serena Williams, ready to play her first competitive singles match in almost four years.“Just watching all the greats and the legends do that, for me to do that as well was just insane,” Joint said in a news conference — after a win.Despite the nerves, despite the being starstruck and despite a wobble when the prospect of beating an all-time great emerged into view, Joint came through a 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3 win on a packed Centre Court. She matched Williams’ power and smacked winners of her own. She met the moment.The position that the 20-year-old Joint found herself in, facing a legend of the sport on one of its biggest courts, is a familiar one in tennis. Young talents rise quickly and face the best early in their careers. During Joint’s win, John McEnroe and Tracy Austin, themselves American tennis stars, recalled facing Jimmy Connors at 18 and Chris Evert at 14 respectively.Why Serena Williams chose Wimbledon to return to playing singlesAva WallaceIt’s a hugely daunting task for any player, one that according to 2026 French Open champion Mirra Andreeva, everyone in the locker room was desperate to avoid.“When I arrived on-site and I was warming up for my practice, they were doing the draw ceremony, I was watching like this (covering her face with her hands) because I don’t think anyone in the draw would have wanted to play against Serena,” Andreeva said in a news conference Saturday.“I’m going to speak for myself. I wouldn’t want to play against Serena. I would be just very nervous.”Joint herself said in a news conference that she had sought counsel from the last player to face Williams in singles, her fellow Aussie Ajla Tomljanović, who kept her composure to beat the American at the U.S. Open four years ago.As well as urging Joint to believe in herself, Tomljanović reminded her that Williams will be just as nervous herself. There was a lot on the line for her too, who at 44 was coming into the match with no warm-up singles match.Williams herself had said as much in a news conference. “I expect to be nervous,” she said. “I was also nervous every single match I ever played in my life. I think that showed the passion and the love and the care, that I cared about my job, whether it was the first round or the second round or the finals. I’ve always had some nerves.