"I'm hitting the ball so well": Venus Williams ready for second tournament of season before Australian Open

The former world No. 1, Venus Williams, is aiming for a new chapter on the WTA Tour and already knows her first opponent at the Hobart International. The 45-year-old American will play her second tournament of the season, following her appearance at the ASB Classic, where she put up a strong fight but lost in three sets to fifth seed Magda Linette.

Williams continues to show that when she sets her mind to it, she can compete at the highest level and stay physically ready to maintain the rhythm of competition. As the oldest player on the Tour, she has managed to earn wildcards and deliver strong performances whenever she returns to the court — even if the results are not the same as in her prime.

Back in 2024, she surprised with a victory at the DC Open against world No. 3 Peyton Stearns. Since then, while wins have been scarce, she has still given top-level opponents a scare, including a three-set battle against Karolina Muchova at the US Open and her recent clash with Linette, where the Polish player had to bring her best to secure the win.

"I'm hitting the ball so well. Had a lot of opportunities to take control of that match and let some slide away," Williams said upon arriving in Hobart. "It's great to be in those positions to actually cross the line. I can't expect to be perfect … as much as I want to be."

The American also reflected on her experience competing on the Tour across different decades — facing players with very different styles and evolving equipment. "I feel like Serena and I were part of a big change in women's tennis. Over time too the equipment has changed," Williams, who made her professional debut in 1994 at just 14 years old, explained. "I've had to adjust my game based on (things like) new strings."

"I think I'm a student of the game, I like to watch and learn from other players. But when you walk on the court, I'm so focused on what I want to accomplish. Winning and losing knows no age."

Although everything indicates that Williams is not yet thinking of retiring, she only selects a few tournaments each season. In fact, she hadn’t traveled to the Australian swing since 2021, making her decision to compete this year — at Auckland, Hobart, and finally the Australian Open — a surprise. "It's a beautiful sport. I love what I do and it's a blessing and honour to keep doing it," she said.

One of the questions for the seven-time major champion was whether she thinks she will return to Australia or if this will be her last time playing the early-season tournaments. "I don't know and even if I did know I wouldn't say. Right now I'm focused on the moment," she replied. "When I first got here … in the air you could smell eucalyptus and I was like 'this is my place.' I was like, we'll get my passport changed," she joked.

Her first match of the tournament will be against German Tatjana Maria, currently world No. 43 and one of the veterans of the Tour at 38 years old. In fact, Maria is the oldest player in the top 100 and a few months ago became the oldest WTA 500 champion, winning the Queen’s Club Championships during the grass-court swing.