Venus Williams Returns to WTA Tour at ATX Open

Venus Williams, the 45-year-old tennis legend, is set to make her return to the WTA Tour next week at the ATX Open in Austin, Texas, where she received a wild card entry for both singles and doubles. The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, who last competed at the 2026 Australian Open, will begin her singles campaign on February 24 against Ajla Tomljanović, the Australian player who defeated Williams' sister Serena in the 23-time major winner's final professional match at the 2022 US Open.

Williams' participation in the WTA 250 event, running from February 21 to March 1, marks her first tournament since an early exit in Melbourne, where she lost in the first round of singles to Olga Danilovic despite holding a 4-0 lead in the deciding set. In doubles there, she partnered with Ekaterina Alexandrova for the first time but also fell in the opening round. Now in Austin, Williams will team up with American Peyton Stearns, an Ohio native ranked outside the top 100, on a doubles wild card. The pair have met before, with Williams defeating Stearns in singles at last year's Washington Open for her most recent victory on the tour.

The singles draw presents a challenging but...