Venus Williams gets US Open wildcard as Serena eyes possible return

Venus Williams has been awarded a wildcard for the US Open singles draw, opening the possibility that sister Serena could join her in New York. The women’s main draw begins on Sunday, 30 August, with one singles wildcard still available.

The 46-year-old Venus first appeared at the tournament 29 years ago and reached the final on her debut in 1997. She won the title in 2000 and 2001, collecting two of her seven Grand Slam singles trophies at Flushing Meadows. The 2017 champion Sloane Stephens has also been granted direct entry.

Venus has struggled for singles results this season. She has lost all 10 of her matches and is without a win in 13, while her last Grand Slam singles victory came at Wimbledon in 2021. She did not play singles at Wimbledon this year and has competed in only one major match, losing to Serbia’s Olga Danilovic in the opening round of the Australian Open.

Her recent schedule has nevertheless included singles and doubles appearances in Washington, Toronto and Cincinnati. She reached the US Open doubles quarter-finals last year with Canada’s Leylah Fernandez, and has remained a strong draw when playing alongside Serena or on her own. Last year, Venus became the oldest US Open singles player in 44 years before losing in three sets to ninth seed Karolina Muchova.

Serena returned to singles at Wimbledon after ending a four-year absence from the sport. The 23-time Grand Slam champion had previously played doubles at Queen’s, but her planned Wimbledon partnership with Venus ended when she injured her knee during a first-round singles defeat by Maya Joint. The sisters reunited at the Cincinnati Open on Tuesday and lost their doubles match in three sets.

The sisters’ doubles plans for New York remain unclear because those wildcards have not yet been announced. Three places are also still open in the revamped mixed doubles event, which starts on 24 August. Serena last played what was expected to be her final tournament at the US Open in 2022, but her comeback has left open the prospect of another singles appearance alongside Venus.