Venus and Serena Williams lose in US Open return

<p>Venus and Serena Williams returned to the US Open court together for the first time in four years on September 4, 2026, in Queens. The sisters were expected to reunite earlier at Wimbledon, but Serena withdrew due to injury.</p><p>Upon entering Arthur Ashe Stadium, they received a significant ovation from the crowd. Serena's jacket displayed her US Open titles, including doubles titles won with Venus in 1999 and 2009.</p><p>Their opponents were Chan Hao-ching from Taiwan and Maya Joint from Australia, who was only a toddler when the Williams sisters won the 2009 US Open. The first set was competitive, with Chan and Joint winning 6-3.</p><p>The Williams sisters started strong in the second set, which went to a seven-point tie-breaker. They had multiple opportunities to win but ultimately clinched the set to continue the match.</p><p>The crowd showed strong support for the Williams sisters throughout the match. In the decisive final set, the Williamses initially took a 5-0 lead, but Joint and Chan fought back to win the match with a final score of 6–3, 6–7(6), 7–6(10), after just over three hours of play. The match demonstrated that the Williams sisters remain competitive in the sport.</p>