Venus Williams refutes that she’s playing BNP Paribas Open

Former world No. 1 Venus Williams said she will not be playing at the upcoming BNP Paribas Open during an event in Denmark on Sunday.

The tournament announced in a press release Wednesday that the 44-year-old Williams was given a wild card for entry and would play in the 1000-level event, which begins March 2 in Indian Wells, California. It was slated to be her first WTA tournament in nearly a year.

But Williams told the crowd at Arena Næstved for “An Evening with Venus Williams” on Sunday that it “wasn’t true” when asked about it.

“No, I’m not playing,” Williams said. “Actually, I found the announcement super amusing because, I don’t know, people seem to be happy, so I was like, ‘Maybe I’ll just go with it, I don’t know.’ I’m actually not going. I’m going to be overseas. I’m not going to be [there] … I just had a player text me today too, like, ‘Can you play doubles?’ [But] I’m not playing.

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“I found out about the wild card when you guys did. Just saying. And I love Indian Wells, I would love to be there and if I could have accepted it, I would have been like, ‘Yes.’ But I already made commitments.”

Representatives for the BNP Paribas Open have yet to respond to ESPN’s request for comment. On the tournament’s website Sunday, Williams remained on the player list as a wild card.

Williams, a seven-time major singles champion and the winner of 49 WTA singles trophies, has not played since the Miami Open last March and has played sparingly over the past few seasons, sparking longtime speculation about her future in the sport and raising questions about whether she had privately retired.

She competed in just two events in 2024 — losing in the first round at Indian Wells and Miami — and won three matches in seven tournaments in 2023. She is ranked No. 974 in the world.