Serena Williams showed flashes of brilliance before her much anticipated return to competitive action after a four-year absence fizzled out in a 6-3 6-7(6) ​6-3 defeat to little-known Australian Maya Joint in the Wimbledon first round.

There were high hopes that the 44-year-old would become the oldest woman to win ‌a singles match at the All England Club since Martina Navratilova achieved the feat aged 47 in 2004, but Joint had other ideas.

The 20-year-old Joint, who was not even born when Williams won the first seven of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles, blocked out all the hullabaloo surrounding her opponent's comeback to produce the most notable victory of her fledgling career.

Joint walked on to Centre Court on the back of ​winning just one match in her last 12 tournaments but by the time she walked off, she was basking in the glory of delivering a brutal knockout ​blow to one of the greats of the sport.

"It was really great to be back at Wimbledon. I never expected to be here. ⁠The atmosphere was amazing. Walking out was amazing. I definitely relished it and missed it and enjoyed the moment more than anything," said Williams, who won the last of ​her seven All England Club titles 10 years ago.

- Reuters