Venus Williams had become considered an inactive player on the WTA tour in 2025 after the tennis legend did not play for more than a year.
The American ended her hiatus with a surprise comeback at the Washington Open on July 21 2025, playing doubles alongside compatriot Hailey Baptiste in a 6-3, 6-1 win over Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue in the last 16.
Williams then became the second-oldest woman to win a WTA Tour-level singles match by beating Peyton Stearns, who is 22 years her junior, 6-3 6-4 in the first round.
“She was moving really well, which I wasn’t expecting too much,” said American Stearns. “Her serves were just on fire.”
Running it back @Venuseswilliams | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/4xMVIl1RWJ
— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) July 23, 2025
How old is Venus Williams? Age, debut
Williams was born in the city of Lynwood, California on June 17, 1980, making her 45 at the 2025 Washington Open.
Her first professional tournament was the Bank of the West Classic in Oakland in October 1994 at the age of 14, with her Grand Slam debut at the 1997 French Open, reaching the second round.
In the same year, Williams reached the final of her maiden US Open, losing to Martina Hingis.
Williams was the oldest woman to win a singles match on tour since 18-time Grand Slam singles champion Martina Navratilova, who was 47 in 2004.
Venus and Serena Williams tennis records
Venus Williams won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2000 and has triumphed four times at SW19 since then, as well as twice in New York alongside an Olympic Games gold medal in 2000.
She last won a major at Wimbledon 2008, beating sister Serena, who was born 15 months after her, in straight sets in the final.
Serena Williams retired in September 2022 and holds the record for the most major titles in the Open Era, winning 22.
An Olympic Games champion in 2012, she won the Australian Open and Wimbledon seven times each, the US Open six times and a hat-trick of French Open titles.
Venus Williams net worth
Williams has earned $42 million in prize money, $30m from sponsors and endorsements, $10m from business interests, $17.7m from real estate and $3m from vehicles and luxury goods, according to Finance Times.
The outlet put Williams’s total net worth at $95m, namechecking major brands she has worked with including sports manufacturer Nike and car manufacturer Porsche.
At the time of the Washington Open, Williams’s recent endorsements on her Instagram account, which had more than 2.1m followers, included fashion brands, an almond range and her motivational book, Strive.
Simply remarkable pic.twitter.com/BWXZzCSZUs
— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) July 23, 2025
Venus Williams fiance: Andrea Preti
Speaking after her return to singles action, Williams revealed she had accepted a proposal from her partner, Andrea Preti.
“My fiance is here and he really encouraged me to keep playing,” said Williams. “There were so many times where I just wanted to coast and kind of chill.
“Do you know how hard it is to play tennis? You guys don’t know how much work goes into this, like it’s 9-to-5 except you’re running the whole time.”
“Lifting weights and just dying, and then you repeat it the next day. So he encouraged me to get through this and it’s wonderful to be here. He’s never seen me play.”
The 37-year-old model, actor, and producer is said to be worth around $1m and had more than 722,000 Instagram followers at the time.
Venus Williams ranking
Williams did not have a ranking at the time of her return, making her singles win over the world number 35 quite a statement.
“I definitely feel I’ll play well,” Williams accurately predicted beforehand. “I’m still the same player. I’m a big hitter. I hit big.
“This is my brand, so it’s about hitting big and actually putting it in. So this will be my effort: put it in the court. That’s my main goal.”
