Venus Williams Shines in DC Open Return

Venus Williams was beaming after her first-round win at the DC Open on Tuesday. At 45 years old, the tennis legend made a surprising return to the court, competing for the first time in 16 months after her last official match. With a strong performance against Payton Stearns, she made history as the oldest woman since Martina Navratilova to win a singles match.

Navratilova achieved this feat at the age of 47 back in 2004.

“It’s challenging to play a perfect match, especially with such talented players in the WTA. Payton played really well. I found myself trying to take it slow,” Williams shared after the match. “It’s about piecing everything together. You can have good games and still lose, but my goal was to win. It’s incredibly rewarding to be back after a break and dealing with injuries.”

Williams entered the DC Open through a wild card invitation, already having secured a victory in doubles the previous day. Her last singles match was in March 2024 at the Miami Open, and her most recent win before that came in August 2023 at the Cincinnati Open.

As she advances to the second round, Williams is set to face fifth seed Magdalena Fleck on Thursday. She also has a doubles match scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.

In her decision to return to tennis, Williams mentioned that it was her team and family’s encouragement that played a significant role. Looking ahead, she’s already eyeing potential opportunities for her participation in the upcoming We Are Open mixed doubles grand slam in New York this summer, where she will be teaming up with Reilly Opelka.