Photo: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images
Tennis legend Venus Williams is set to return to the court for her 33rd consecutive season on the WTA Tour, beginning at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, this January, per ESPN.
Organizers announced on Wednesday (November 5) that Williams, 45, will compete in the January 5-11 tournament, a signal that she may be preparing for another run at the Australian Open later that month. Williams reached the Melbourne final twice in her career, most recently in 2017.
Williams first made her professional debut in 1994 in Oakland, California, and has played in at least two WTA events every season since, according to the tour. Her most recent singles appearance came at the 2025 U.S. Open, where she fell in a three-set first-round match to 11th-seeded Karolina Muchova.
Currently ranked No. 570, Williams remains the oldest active player on the WTA Tour. The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion is five years senior to the next oldest ranked competitors, Naoko Eto and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Williams’ return to Auckland marked over three decades of competition since her debut as a 14-year-old tennis star.
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