Venus is back in tennis and wishes Serena would come out of retirement

WASHINGTON (AP) — Venus Williams is back on the tennis scene, ready to compete for the first time in more than a year, and while she smiled or laughed frequently Sunday while discussing her return at the DC Open, there was something that would make her even happier: if her younger sister Serena were along for the ride. "I keep saying to my team: The only thing that would make this better is if she was here. Like, we always did everything together, so of course I miss her," Venus said when asked about a recent video on social media that showed Serena swinging a racket. "But if she comes back, I'm sure she'll let y'all know." That, of course, was said with a wide grin. Serena, 43, hasn't played since the 2022 U.S. Open, when she declared she was "evolving" away from the sport she dominated for stretches on the way to 23 Grand Slam singles titles and an additional 14 in doubles with Venus. "I don't know what she's going to do. I don't ask those questions," Venus said a day before the hard-court tournament in the nation's capital begins. "I think we always hit the ball, because that's who we are. We're always hitting." She said it was during a recent practice session of hers that Serena showed up and joined in for about 15 or 20 minutes. "She can take six months off and she clocks it clean," Venus said. "You can't teach that kind of talent. She's just so good." They both were the best around at one point. Both reached No. 1 in the rankings. Venus, who turned 45 last month, won seven major singles championships, two at the U.S. Open and five at Wimbledon. Her last tournament was in March 2024 at the Miami Open, where she exited in the first round. It's been so long that the official WTA Tour website lists her as "inactive." "This is very special for me to come back and play tennis," Venus said. "I think it's a surprise for the fans — and a surprise in general, as I hold my cards tight." Sure does. It came as a bit of a shock to the tennis world when her appearance in Washington via a wild-card invitation was announced a week ago. Her team had reached out to DC Open chairman Mark Ein via text in April to gauge whether he'd be open to having Venus at an event she last entered in 2022. He said he needed two seconds to reply: "Of course." "She's such an icon of the sport — and, importantly, both on and off the court," Ein said in an interview. "So anytime you can have her engaged and have the spotlight on her and everything she's done and continues to do, it's hugely positive." What did she miss the most while away from the tour? "All the times that I had and, of course, the adrenaline, all those things," Venus said. "Just the pure fun of playing the game, the fun of the challenge, overcoming — when you play, you overcome so many challenges: your opponents, the conditions, a lot of times you have to overcome yourself. Those things are very exciting." When asked why she's getting back on court, Venus offered a simple response: "Why not?" As for whether this is a one-stop tour or she plans to play elsewhere, she wasn't prepared to say much. "I'm just here for now, and who knows?" Venus said. "Maybe there's more. ... But at the moment, I'm focused just on this. I haven't played in a year. There is no doubt I can play tennis, but obviously coming back to play matches, it takes time to get in the swing of things. I definitely feel I'll play well. I'm still the same player. I'm a big hitter. I hit big. This is my brand." ___ Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis