The 45-year-old returned to the tour this year after around 16 months away.
Tennis icon Venus Williams will start the new year at the WTA tournament in Auckland, New Zealand. As the organizers announced on Wednesday, the 45-year-old received a wild card for the tournament, which will take place from January 5 to 11 in the run-up to the Australian Open (starting January 18).
This year, the seven-time Grand Slam winner returned to the tour after around 16 months. After competing in Washington D.C. and Cincinnati, she lost in the first round of the US Open at the end of August to Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic.
