Serena Williams is playing in the US Open, and she's using tune-up tournaments to prep for New York's Grand Slam

• Serena Williams will play in the 2022 US Open, according to the entry list released Wednesday.
• This year's tournament marks Williams' first appearance at the Grand Slam in two years.

Serena Williams will play in this year's US Open.

The 23-time major champion was among the most notable individuals included on the tournament entry list released Wednesday. Williams' participation in the 2022 US Open will mark her first appearance at the New York-based Grand Slam in two years.

The highly anticipated decision comes less than a month after Williams played in her first Grand Slam in a full year at Wimbledon. In London, the 40-year-old suffered a surprising first-round exit at the hands of Harmony Tan.

But even after that loss, Williams hinted that she might compete at the US Open come early September.

"When you're at home, especially in New York and that being the place I first won a Grand Slam, it is always special," Williams said following the loss at Wimbledon. "There's always motivation to get better and play at home."

Before heading to Wimbledon with a wildcard entry, the superstar had only participated in one tournament — the Eastbourne Invitational, where she paired up with Ons Jabeur in women's doubles — to break her year-long hiatus. And once Williams faced Tan on Centre Court, her lack of match fitness proved to be her downfall.

She appeared visibly fatigued the longer the match — which came down to a tiebreak and lasted more than three hours — continued on. Williams said after the match that, despite her disappointment with not to be able to give more, she was pleased with her performance.

"I gave all I could do," she said. "Maybe tomorrow I could have given more. Maybe a week ago I could have given more. But today was what I could do."

"Physically I did pretty good," Williams added. "If you play week-in, week-out, or every three or four weeks there is a little more match toughness. You have to think if I was playing matches I wouldn't miss some of those points."

It appears Williams has learned her lesson. This time around, she's taking her pre-major preparation a bit more seriously by playing in two separate tune-up tournaments during the run-up to Flushing Meadows.

She'll be part of the field for the National Bank Open in Toronto, which runs August 6-14. Immediately thereafter, Williams will head to Ohio for the Western & Southern Open — known to most as The Cincinnati Masters.

If she's at full strength by the time she arrives at the final Grand Slam of the year, Williams will be all but impossible to stop. She's won a whopping six singles titles in Queens, tied with tennis legend Chris Evert for most all-time on the women's side.

But there's another monumental achievement Williams has been eyeing throughout this comeback — and well before it, too. She's one major championship away from tying Margaret Court for most Grand Slam titles, man or women, in the history of the sport.

Williams has been searching for No. 24 ever since returning from maternity leave in 2017. In the subsequent five years, she's made two runs to the US Open Final — falling short to young upstarts in both cases — and another appearance in the semifinal.