Tennis fans are eagerly awaiting the last Grand Slam tournament of the year. It could see the comeback of a sporting legend.
Former tennis champion Venus Williams has made her comeback on the WTA Tour after more than a year out and recorded a victory in doubles. The 45-year-old won 6-3, 6-1 against Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue at the DC Open in Washington alongside Hailey Baptiste, who is 22 years her junior.
Williams had previously played at the Miami Open in March 2024. Her last doubles match – with her sister Serena at the 2022 US Open – was almost three years ago. Washington marked Williams’ return to the tour after recovering from uterine surgery last year.
Will the sports legend also compete in the singles competition at the US Open? Signs are growing that Williams will also return to the last Grand Slam tournament of the year. Venus Williams has already registered for the newly added mixed competition in Flushing Meadows.
Also competing in singles at the US Open?
According to the updated entry list, she will be playing alongside her US compatriot Reilly Opelka on August 19 and 20 as part of US Open Fan Week. The organizers have not yet commented on plans for a possible singles appearance by the Californian.
The 16 participating pairs will be determined half by world rankings and half by wild cards. The winners of the tournament will receive a prize of one million dollars.
Williams won one title each in mixed doubles at the Australian Open and the French Open. In New York, her best mixed doubles result was reaching the quarterfinals in 1998.
Williams: “I’m not going to reveal my cards”
Williams herself fueled speculation last weekend about a return to the site of her US Open singles triumphs in 2000 and 2001. “Right now, I’m focused on this tournament. But who knows, maybe something else will come up, but I’m not going to reveal my cards,” said the 2000 Olympic champion: “I think I know what I want to do, but I don’t necessarily want to talk about it.”
At the US Open, the mixed doubles will take place for the first time in a reformed format a few days before the main tournament (starting August 24) in Flushing Meadows. Following a facelift with a new date, more prize money, a more compact schedule, and fewer matches, all of the top 10 men and nine of the top 12 women in the world rankings have entered the competition.
