Williams to Become Oldest Singles Player at US Open Since Richards

Venus Williams, a two-time former champion, is poised to participate in her 25th US Open after being granted a wild card entry into the women’s singles competition.

The 45-year-old American recently made a comeback following a 16-month absence due to a serious health issue. She was among the eight female players selected as wild card recipients by the tournament organizers on Wednesday.

Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, will be the most senior singles competitor at the US Open since Renee Richards, who participated at the age of 47 in 1981.

Last year, Williams underwent a procedure to eliminate uterine fibroids, causing her to miss the majority of the season.

She returned to the sport last month and achieved the distinction of being the oldest WTA match victor, a feat last accomplished by Martina Navratilova at 47 at Wimbledon in 2004, defeating Peyton Stearns in the opening round of the DC Open.

Venus Williams, who won the 2000 Sydney Olympic singles title, boasts five Wimbledon singles titles in addition to her US Open victories in 2000 and 2001.

In her debut at New York in 1997, she was defeated in the final by Martina Hingis as a teenager. In 2002, Venus also finished as runner-up to her younger sister, Serena.

Her most recent of 49 WTA titles was secured in 2016 at the Taiwan Open.

Williams is also scheduled to participate in the revamped US Open mixed doubles event next week, partnering with Reilly Opelka.

Caroline Garcia, 31, from France, received a wild card for what will be her final Grand Slam before retiring. Her best performance at a major tournament was when she advanced to the US Open semi-finals three years ago.

Americans Clervie Ngounoue, Julieta Pareja, Caty McNally, Valerie Glozman, and Alyssa Ahn are also among the wild card recipients, as is Australian Talia Gibson.

In the men’s division, American athletes Brandon Holt, Nishesh Basavareddy, Tristan Boyer, Emilio Nava, Stefan Dostanic, and Darwin Blanch have all secured wild cards.

The last two wild cards were awarded to Valentin Royer of France and Tristan Schoolkate of Australia.

The US Open singles main draw is set to commence on August 24.