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Venus Williams Stepping onto the court and making history australian open But Serbia’s Olga Danilovic failed to win after winning the last six games in three thrilling sets.
Williams, 45, became the oldest female player to compete in a singles event after accepting a wild card into the main draw. The seven-time Grand Slam champion returned to Melbourne after five years and got off to a strong start, hitting a stunning forehand winner in the tie-break to take the first set to the delight of the crowd.
Danilovic fought back to win the second set and level the match, but Williams looked set for victory, her first in a Grand Slam singles match since Wimbledon 2021, where she led 4-0 in the final.
But Danilovic, 24, fought back and defeated Williams 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the second round. Williams made her Australian Open debut in 1998 as a 17-year-old and received a standing ovation as she left the court, but she would also play doubles with Ekaterina Alexandrova.
“It was a great game, a great moment,” Williams said. “The energy of the crowd was amazing. It was really uplifting for me. She had a great game. There was some luck, too. That’s the sport. That’s how it goes sometimes. But it was an amazing moment.”
When Williams accepted a wild card into the tournament, she had no idea she would make history. The five-time Wimbledon champion returned to tennis last summer and competed at the U.S. Open in both singles and doubles, including She and Leila Fernandez reached the quarter-finals September.
Williams married husband Andrea Preti in December but said before then she had “trained non-stop for three months” in preparation for her first trip to Australia since 2021.
The American reached two singles finals in Melbourne, losing both times to her sister serena williams She is also a four-time doubles champion in 2003 and 2017.
Williams also said her return to tennis is not over yet and hinted that her schedule will be more regular this year.
“In a lot of ways, I had to relearn how to do things, if that makes sense,” Williams said. “I’m really proud of my effort today because I’m playing better every game and getting to where I want to be. Now I just have to keep moving forward and try to control my mistakes.
“Those are also things that come with playing extra games, like getting your feet in the right position, picking the right shot, all those things that I’m still learning. It’s a little weird, but I’m super excited to play so well and put myself in that position and be so close.
“I’ll think about what I’m going to do next. I have doubles here, so that’s my focus right now.”
Williams could have faced Coco Gauff in the second round, but Danilovic was not yet born when Williams made her Australian Open main draw debut in 1998 and completed a stunning comeback.
“These things don’t happen every day and playing against Venus Williams is something I can’t take for granted,” Danilovic said in an on-court interview.
“At 4-0, I said to myself, ‘Play your best, give it your all, play little by little’. I’m happy that I won this game, but it was such a pleasure to play against such a legend.”