Venus Williams returned to Grand Slam tennis on Monday night, 25 August, at age 45, contesting a record-extending 25th US Open after receiving a wild card. The former world No. 1 had not appeared at a major since the 2023 tournament and resumed the circuit last month following a 16-month lay-off that included surgery for uterine fibroids. Under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium, the seven-time major champion pushed Czech 11th seed Karolina Muchova but was beaten 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 in two hours. Williams fought back to take the second set—her first at Flushing Meadows since 2020—before the world No. 13 limited her to just three games in the decider. The match was Williams’s 94th Grand Slam main-draw appearance, the most by any woman in the Open era, and made her the oldest singles competitor at the US Open since Renée Richards in 1981. While she has not won a singles match at the event since 2019, the two-time US Open champion said beforehand that competing in her home major “does not get old; it just gets more exciting.”