The seven-time Grand Slam champion – two of those successes coming at Flushing Meadows in 2000 and 2001 – will be the oldest singles entrant at the tournament since Renee Richards when aged 47 in 1981, according to the International Tennis Federation.
Williams already had been given a wild card by the US Tennis Association for next week’s mixed doubles competition, with the singles tournament starting from August 24 – live on Sky Sports.
She won seven major singles championships – including at the US Open in 2000 and 2001 – along with another 14 in women’s doubles, all won with her younger sister, Serena, plus two in mixed doubles.
Williams’ younger sister Serena retired with 23 Grand Slam singles trophies after playing at the 2022 US Open, while Venus’ last appearance at a slam came at Flushing Meadows in 2023, losing in the first round. She hasn’t won a singles match there since 2019.
When Williams came back to the tour last month at the DC Open in Washington – her first match anywhere in 16 months – a reporter asked whether it would be a one-time thing or if there were plans for other tournaments.
“I’m just here for now, and who knows?” Williams replied at the time. “Maybe there’s more, but at the moment, I’m focused just on this. I haven’t played in a year.