MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – American tennis phenomenon Venus Williams is set to make tennis history at the Australian Open, becoming the oldest woman ever to compete in the tournament at 45 – and the seven-time Grand Slam champion isn’t backing down from the groundbreaking challenge ahead.
The United States great is back at Melbourne Park for the first time in five years and said she
was grateful to have the chance to prove she still has what it takes.
The former world number one, now ranked 576, faces 68th-ranked Olga Danilovic of Serbia in
the first round on Sunday after being handed a wildcard.
ALSO READ: ‘It’s in my DNA’: Williams relishes US Open return at 45
Williams has played only sporadically in recent years and lost in the first round of both of her
warm-up tournaments.
“I’m super, super grateful for the opportunity from Tennis Australia. Grateful for the
opportunity to play in front of the fans,” she said.
“I have just received so much support in the tournaments leading up, walking around the city
and everything. My hope is to play my best.”
A five-time Wimbledon champion, Williams was an Australian Open singles finalist in 2003
and 2017 and won the doubles title four times alongside sister Serena.
“This is the greatest place on Earth to play,” she said.
“I have had amazing memories here. I love challenges, so I’m up for the challenge.”
Asked by reporters what it meant to trump Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she lost in
the first round in 2015, Williams said: “I hadn’t thought about it till it came out in the press, so
yay, yay for me.
“Let’s do this.”
