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'Love is the key' says evergreen Williams as she plays on and on
The Guardian
|August 07, 2025
Venus is back on the US circuit aged 45 with the aim of being the best she can be despite health struggles
I still haven't seen the Rolling Stones," says Venus Williams, smiling, as she reminisced about her unforgettable professional tennis debut at the age of 14 in Oakland, California, an occasion that justified years of hype surrounding her stratospheric potential. Her first ever professional tennis match took place next door to a Rolling Stones concert. Now, 31 years later, at 45 years old, Williams is still here.
Three weeks after returning to professional tennis for the first time in 16 months with a straight sets singles victory over the then world No 35 Peyton Stearns at the Citi Open in Washington, which marked her as the second-oldest woman in history to win a WTA Tour-level singles match and also silenced criticisms about her enduring presence on the tour, Williams now takes her comeback to the Cincinnati Open.
This story is from the August 07, 2025 edition of The Guardian.
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