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A quarter century after she helped christen Arthur Ashe Stadium with a magical run to the finals at age 17 in 1997, Venus Williams was unable to join her younger sister Serena in the second round of what could be the final U.S. Open for both tennis icons.
In her first Grand Slam event since Wimbledon in 2021 and only her fourth singles match this year overall, the 42-year-old Venus suffered a 6-1, 7-6 (5) defeat Tuesday to Belgium’s Alison Van Uytvanck at Ashe. The two-time U.S. Open singles champion and seven-time Grand Slam winner was granted a wild-card entry into the tournament after also dropping her previous three matches this summer.
“It was definitely the longest time I have been away from tennis and been without a racquet in my hand. So it was a completely new experience for me, trying to acclimate as quick as possible to be ready for the U.S. Open, which was not easy,” said Venus Williams, whose WTA ranking is down to 1,504.
