The most unexpected, yet expected, wild card for the 2026 Australian Open has gone to Venus Williams. The American, who refuses to hang up her racket at the age of 45, has received an invitation from the organisers in recognition of a career in which she won seven Grand Slam singles titles.
In the competition, which will run from January 18 to February 1, she will become the oldest player to compete in the main draw, surpassing the mark of Japan’s Kimiko Date, who played at the age of 44
Venus is currently ranked 581st in the WTA, a circuit in which she has been crowned in 49 tournaments. The elder Williams sibling has received two other invitations in Auckland and Hobart as a warm-up for the Antipodean major
To find Venus’ first appearance on the Melbourne Park courts, you have to go back to the 1998 edition. It was then that she defeated her sister Serena in the second round of the Open before falling in the quarter-finals to compatriot Lindsay Davenport
Serena, her executioner
She had not played the big prime since 2021 and her best results were the finals in 2003 and 2017, both with defeat at the hands of Serena. In 2026 she will complete her 22nd appearance in the main draw of the Australian Open
It should be remembered that the veteran tennis player married actor Andrea Preti in December in Palm Beach, Florida. Williams’ appearances on the circuit are few and far between
Last season, she only played three tournaments and achieved a single victory with fellow American Peyton Stearns in Washington
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