Venus Williams defied the odds and made a winning return to singles action at the Citi Open.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion had not played since March 2024 and she is now 44 years of age.
Williams made her return on Monday alongside Hailey Baptiste in doubles action, where they defeated Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue.
But the former world number passed the test by defeating Peyton Stearns 6-3, 6-4 to become the oldest to win a WTA Tour match since Martina Navratilova in 2004.
Peyton Stearns explains what she did not expect from Venus Williams at the Citi Open
Venus Williams competed against Stearns who is 22 years her junior and ranked 35 in the world.
The home fans flocked to the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Washington D.C. to cheer on one of tennis’ biggest icons.
Despite falling behind in both sets, Williams reminded everyone of her quality as she used her aggressive serve and forehand to overturn the deficit.
Williams converted six of the 14 break point chances and won 71 percent of her first-serve points, in addition to 70 percent of points won while returning her opponent’s second serve.
Williams sealed victory in one hour and 37 minutes for her first victory since the 2023 Cincinnati Masters.
As impressive as the five-time Wimbledon champion was on serve and the return, Stearns admitted she was not expecting Williams’ movement to be at the level it was.
“She played some ball tonight,” Stearns said. “She was moving really well, which I wasn’t expecting too much, honestly. Her serves were just on fire.”
Venus Williams was in attack mode during her first round win in Washington D.C.
Williams made a career playing an ultra aggressive game with elite athleticism. That was on show once again in her comeback singles victory against Stearns, who she played against for the first time.
When describing her game plan, she was only going to try one thing. “I think I just attacked the whole time. It’s just trying to find the right balance between going too hard and not enough,” she said.
“It’s the same because this is what I do, but at the same time, it was imperative for me to do it. Now I don’t have to do this, but I have the same fire and the same want to win.
“In some ways, I’m still getting back into that. When you do it every day, everything is natural. Not as natural a feeling now, but I hope I can get back to that.”
Williams will take on Magdalena Frech in her next match, who is seeded fifth at the Citi Open. She knows this will be another tough test, but she is more than up for the challenge.
“It’s not easy. It won’t be easy. It’s not easy for anyone out here,” she added. “So I know I’ll have to fight for every match. But I’m up for that.”
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