Twenty years into her unparalleled career, Serena means more than ever

In her return to Grand Slam competition, Serena Williams defeated Kristyna Pliskova, 7-6 (4), 6-4. (Getty Images)

PARIS—It took all of a millisecond for tennis fans to know that Serena Williams was back in Grand Slam action. No one else could wow the crowd at Roland Garros, and reference her own history, by walking onto Court Philippe Chatrier in an updated, streamlined version of the cat suit she first made famous at the US Open in 2002.

This time the black kit with the red belt—which makes her feel like “a warrior princess, queen from Wakanda maybe,” she said—was more than just a fashion statement. It was also a statement about who she is now at age 36, and what she’s been through as she embarks on yet another climb up the sport’s totem pole.

“All the moms out there that had a tough pregnancy and have to come back and try to be fierce, in the middle of everything,” Williams told Tennis Channel’s Jon Wertheim. “That’s what this represents. You can’t beat a cat suit, right?”

Can you beat a player in a cat suit? Serena won the title at the 2002 US Open, and she won her first-round match over Kristyna Pliskova on Tuesday, 7-6 (4), 6-4. Whether she was inspired by what she means as a symbol to mothers, or whether she was just ecstatic to be playing Grand Slam tennis—the only tennis there is, in her mind—after 15 months away, Serena put on a encouragingly gritty and determined performance.

There was no sense that she was easing her way back into competition, and no sense that she was giving herself a break for being rusty. Serena was as hard on herself as she’s always been at the majors. There was no sense that, even under these circumstances, even against an opponent who threw down 15 aces, anything other than a victory was acceptable.

When it came to her game, I knew Serena was officially back, and back to win, at 3-3 in the first set. The match was all-even, Pliskova was firing aces and Serena hadn’t really dug into it yet. At 15-15, she hit a forehand winner. At 30-15, she and Pliskova played a long point filled with counterpunching and scrambling; Serena’s grunt grew louder until she finished the rally with another forehand winner. Finally, at 40-15, Serena hit what she thought was an ace, and began her trademark “ace walk” to the sideline; but the ball was called wide. Slightly annoyed, Serena made sure she hit a third straight forehand winner, so she could do her ace walk—officially a “forehand walk” this time—anyway.

“I think the match went, you know, well,” said a relaxed-looking Serena afterward. “It wasn’t an easy match, the beginning was so many aces, and I knew after her first game of serving, I said, ‘OK, I have to serve really well today.’...But overall I was definitely happy with my performance and how I played today.”

When she went down 0-3 in the first set tiebreaker, Serena played her most consistent tennis of the day, punctuating each winning point with a vintage “Come on!” And she played with a similar back-to-the-wall stubbornness at end of the second set. Broken at 3-2, she broke back and held at love; down three break points while serving for the match at 5-4, she escaped with a hold.

“I feel like I’m on the right track,” Serena said, “I’ve been putting a lot of work in on the court—off the court, on the court, on the court, off the court, that’s kind of been my life. I’ve been really enjoying it. Hopefully the results continue to show.”

WATCH: Match highlights

Afterward, it didn’t take long for Serena to make her way from the court to the interview room. Her desire to get home and see her daughter, Alexis Olympia, was the reason for her promptness, she said. Once there, she talked about the difficulty she had giving birth, the blood clots she’s suffered over the last year, and how the cat suit helps with her circulation.

“I feel like a lot of people don’t talk about it,” she said of her pregnancy. “They talk about the baby and how happy they are. But it’s a lot that goes into it...and it’s called a miracle for a reason, because it’s a miracle, and it’s very difficult sometimes to make it through. I really appreciate that a lot more now.”

“I have just been speaking out about it, and so many women can relate. And then we can open up the community and talk about it more and help each other out, because it’s something we should talk about.”

Serena has long been a symbol of strength for women, for female athletes, for African-Americans, as well as for those of us who love tennis—her fame and excellence and continued commitment have raised the sport’s profile. Now Serena has enthusiastically added moms to her list of inspirees. Judging by her performance on Tuesday, playing that role seems destined to bring new energy to her game. Twenty years into her unparalleled career, Serena means more than ever.