Playing alongside Hailey Baptiste, who is nearly half her age at 23 years old, Williams beat Canada's Eugenie Bouchard and American teenager Clervie Ngounoue 6-3, 6-1 in the first round on Monday. Then on Tuesday, she stunned former NCAA champion Peyton Stearns, who is ranked 35th in the world, in a 6-3, 6-4 singles upset.

Venus Williams confirmed her engagement to Italian actor Andrea Preti after one year of dating during Washington's Mubadala Citi DC Open

Kevin Durant attended Venus Williams and Hailey Baptiste's doubles match at the 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open. On Monday afternoon, Venus Williams played her first professional tennis match in over a year. Williams teamed up with Hailey Baptiste in doubles at the 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open.

SportsLine tennis expert Blake Von Hagen reveals his 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open picks for Tuesday's women's first-round match between Peyton Stearns and Venus Williams

Speaking on the latest episode of his Served podcast, former world No.1 Andy Roddick gave his full backing to Venus Williams as she accepts a wild card into the DC Open at age 45, marking her first match since the 2024 Miami Open.

Venus Williams is paired with Reilly Opelka, and Wimbledon runner-up Amanda Anisimova is joined by Holger Rune on the updated list of teams signed up to try to enter the newfangled U.S.