Venus Williams returns to Australian Open after five-year absence following wildcard confirmation

It has now been officially confirmed what had been rumored for weeks: Venus Williams will return to the Australian Open after receiving a wildcard announced today by the tournament organizers. The seven-time Grand Slam champion will make her return to Melbourne for the first time since 2021.

Five years have passed since Venus Williams’ last appearance at the Australian Open, a tournament where she produced some memorable performances, reaching the final in 2003 and 2017—both times losing to her sister Serena Williams.

The 45-year-old had already confirmed her presence at the ASB Classic in Auckland, which begins next week, after also receiving a wildcard. Currently ranked World No. 582, Venus requires invitations to compete in Tour-level events, something that has not been an issue whenever she has decided to return to competition in recent years.

The former World No. 1 is the latest wildcard announced for the tournament, after Tennis Australia had already revealed seven of the eight wildcards for the women’s singles main draw.

This confirms the full list of wildcards for the women’s draw, which is dominated by local players: Talia Gibson (No. 118), Priscilla Hon (No. 121), Emerson Jones (No. 147), and Tailah Preston (No. 205). Also included are France’s Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah (No. 117) through an agreement with the French Tennis Federation, and Elizabeth Mandlik (No. 179) via the USTA. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s Zarina Diyas (No. 281) earned her place by winning the Asia-Pacific Wild Card Playoff in Chengdu.

Venus Williams has recorded a total of 54 victories across 21 appearances at the Australian Open. Her first appearance came back in 1998—28 years ago—where she reached the quarterfinals. Over her career, she reached at least the quarterfinals nine times in Melbourne, although she played only two finals, separated by 14 years, both ending in defeats to her sister Serena Williams.

Williams’ most recent appearance in Melbourne was in 2021, when she reached the second round of the tournament. On that occasion, she became the first player over the age of 40 to win a Grand Slam match since Martina Navratilova at Wimbledon in 2004.

On her debut, Williams defeated Belgium’s Kirsten Flipkens in straight sets (7-5, 6-2), but then fell in the second round to qualifier Sara Errani, who claimed a comfortable 6-1, 6-0 victory.

The American has already shown that she can still compete at a high level, having secured a win at the DC Open against Peyton Stearns, who was world No. 35 at the time. Venus later appeared at the Cincinnati Open and the US Open, although she was unable to record further victories.

Williams has also demonstrated that she remains competitive in doubles, producing a notable run at the US Open where she reached the quarterfinals alongside Leylah Fernandez. She also teamed up with Reilly Opelka in mixed doubles, although they were eliminated in the first round. The doubles wildcards have not yet been announced, and it would not be a surprise if Williams were among the invitees once again.