Is Venus Williams Making a Comeback at the DC Open After 16 Months?

Washington DC, July 20 (NationPress) Venus Williams is set to make her return to the tour after a lengthy break of 16 months, having been included in the draw for the DC Open.

In the opening round, Williams will face fellow American Peyton Stearns. This marks her second participation in the D.C. event, following a disappointing first-round exit in 2022.

Additionally, she will compete in women's doubles alongside her partner Hailey Baptiste.

The 45-year-old athlete, a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, last participated in a tournament at the Miami Open back in March 2024.

The North American summer hard-court season has officially commenced, with the main draw for the WTA 500 Mubadala DC Open being released on Saturday.

A total of 28 women will be competing for this year's title in Washington, including five Grand Slam singles champions. The top four seeds are granted first-round byes.

Leading the field as the number one seed is World No. 4 Jessica Pegula, who clinched her inaugural WTA singles title in Washington six years ago, in 2019.

On the other side of this quarter, an exciting all-American first-round matchup is set between Baptiste and Sofia Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion. Kenin, seeded sixth, won their only previous encounter at Roland Garros in 2021.

Williams is positioned in the second quarter, which includes No. 3 seed Elena Rybakina, the reigning Wimbledon champion. After her first-round bye, she will compete against either the promising Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko or Anastasia Potapova.

Clara Tauson of Denmark is seeded fourth and has also received a first-round bye in the fourth quarter. Tauson is currently enjoying her debut week as a Top 20 player following a strong performance at Wimbledon.

At the opposite end of this quarter, former Top 10 player Danielle Collins from the United States will face No. 8 seed Magda Linette from Poland in the first round. Collins currently leads their head-to-head 1-0, having won their previous meeting in 2018.

Another American, Emma Navarro, is positioned as the No. 2 seed in the last quarter. Following her first-round bye, she will compete against either Maria Sakkari, who was a finalist in Washington in 2023, or Katie Boulter.

This quarter also includes two major champions. The 2021 US Open champion, Emma Raducanu, will face No. 7 seed Marta Kostyuk in the opening round, where Kostyuk leads their head-to-head 2-1, with a recent win on clay in Madrid this year.

Finally, four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka will take on Yulia Putintseva in her first match. Their overall head-to-head is tied at 3-3, although Osaka has triumphed in their last three encounters, including two last year.