Serena Williams' return to Grand Slam action for the first time in 12 months has generated much attention, and the 23-time major champion revealed an interesting way she is calming her mind beforehand.
Williams' opening round match against Harmony Tan will undoubtedly be on Centre Court. Her last appearance on the biggest court at SW19 ended in sad and emotional scenes.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion was forced to retire from her first-round match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich after sustaining a leg injury after slipping on the grass. That issue sidelined her for nearly a year.
After months of rampant speculation, Williams finally returned to tennis at last week's Eastbourne International by playing doubles with Ons Jabeur. The pair reached the semifinals before withdrawing due to the Tunisian having a slight injury concern.
With all due respect to the Eastbourne International, playing singles for the first time in 12 months at what many consider the biggest tournament in the world is more nerve-wracking, and players need to consider how to manage that stress.
Williams has learned how to manage anxiety during her long and legendary career. The 40-year-old shared what she did to prepare for the big occasion of her return to singles action in an Instagram post.
In the video below, Williams said she relaxes her mind by building legos. The six-time US Open champion shared she was building a LEGO of Thor's hammer, which was on-brand since a movie starring the Marvel superhero is coming out next month.
Williams also admitted she loves Marvel overall. For that reason, she was watching the first Iron Man movie. The American states she has watched the film about 20 times and can almost quote the entire movie.
Building LEGO is an innovative but intelligent way to relax one's mind. It requires focus while also being fun. Of course, it is also hard to argue with the methods of a woman who has won 23 Grand Slam titles.