Latest news with #MagdalenaFrech
CTV News
5 hours ago
- Sport
- CTV News
Venus Williams receives a wild-card entry with Reilly Opelka to play mixed doubles at the U.S. Open
Venus Williams lunges for the ball during a match against Magdalena Frech, of Poland, at the Citi Open tennis tournament Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Toronto Sun
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Venus Williams receives a wild-card entry to play mixed doubles at US Open
Published Jul 29, 2025 • Last updated 6 minutes ago • 2 minute read Venus Williams lunges for the ball during a match against Magdalena Frech, of Poland, at the Citi Open tennis tournament Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Washington. Photo by Nick Wass / AP Venus Williams' comeback is headed to the U.S. Open next month, when she will enter the redesigned mixed doubles tournament with Reilly Opelka via a wild-card entry. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The 45-year-old Williams, who returned to the tennis tour last week after more than a year away, and Opelka were among the 14 teams announced Tuesday by the U.S. Tennis Association for its mixed doubles event on Aug. 19-20. Eight of the pairings received direct entry into the field based on having the highest combined current singles rankings, and six were given wild cards by the USTA. The players with spots in the bracket include nine who have won at least one Grand Slam singles title and 14 who are ranked in the WTA or ATP top 10 for singles. The eight duos with direct entry are No. 11 Emma Navarro and No. 1 Jannik Sinner; No. 10 Paula Badosa and No. 5 Jack Draper; No. 3 Iga Swiatek and No. 13 Casper Ruud; No. 12 Elena Rybakina and No. 4 Taylor Fritz; No. 7 Amanda Anisimova and No. 9 Holger Rune; Belinda Bencic and No. 3 Alexander Zverev; No. 4 Jessica Pegula and No. 15 Tommy Paul; No. 5 Mirra Andreeva and No. 14 Daniil Medvedev. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Badosa originally had sought a place in the field with Stefanos Tsitsipas, while Draper initially was going to play alongside Zheng Qinwen. In addition to Williams-Opelka, the wild-card entrants are Emma Raducanu and No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz; No. 8 Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe; Olga Danilovic and No. 6 Novak Djokovic; Taylor Townsend and No. 7 Ben Shelton; and last year's U.S. Open mixed doubles champions, Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori. A total of 16 duos will be competing for the $1 million top prize; the last two wild-card pairs will be known at a later date. It is still possible that Williams will ask for, and receive, a wild-card entry for singles. Those are expected to be announced by the USTA the week of Aug. 11. She won one match each in singles and doubles at the D.C. Open in Washington last week after not competing anywhere since the Miami Open in March 2024. Williams owns seven Grand Slam titles in singles, 14 in women's doubles — all won with her younger sister Serena — and two in mixed doubles. MLB Ontario Wrestling Golf Toronto & GTA
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Venus Williams, 45, made clear matches in DC were no farewell, with US Open return among her wishes
Advertisement 'I'm sorry to have [fallen] short,' Williams said after being eliminated by 24th-ranked Magdalena Frech 6-2, 6-2 on Thursday night, 'but I know I can play better. And I know I will play better.' Yes, there will be more: Williams next heads to the Cincinnati Open in August. That's certain. And she also might very well be competing at the US Open later next month, if the US Tennis Association awards her a wild-card entry. The USTA already announced that Williams asked for an invitation to play with Reilly Opelka in the tournament's newfangled mixed doubles event. Williams made quite obvious that the whole experience in Washington was fun for her. She loves the challenge. She loves playing tennis. Plus, what's not to like about so much adulation from so many? Advertisement 'Everything is about her [at] this tournament. All the media, all the fans — everyone is for her,' Frech said. 'She's a superstar. She's a legend here.' There's more to it, though. Because Williams also made clear that this is not merely about having a good time. She wants to win, too. 'There's so many learnings from here. I know exactly what I need to work on, where I can improve. The good news is I'm always in control of the point. The important part is to put the ball in,' Williams said with a smile. 'So this is one thing I didn't do today. Was I in control? Absolutely. Will I be in control of most of my matches? Most likely, yes. That's the place I want to be, so I'm putting myself in that position. That's what counts.' Related : Williams still can hammer a serve, as the series of aces she delivered at more than 110 mph during her straight-set victory Tuesday against 35th-ranked Peyton Stearns showed. Still can pound forehands and backhands, too. As Stearns put it: 'She played some ball tonight.' At the end of her final news conference in Washington, Williams spoke about her takeaways from the matches she played and the work she put in to make them possible after needing to stay off the court last year because of surgery for uterine fibroids. Her answer sounded a bit like a warning to other players out there who will face her. 'I'll reflect on this match and the things I could have done better. I'll reflect on my preparation going into the matches to make sure I'm prime and ready. Those are the kind of things. But more than anything, I take a lot of information from this tournament. So much data,' Williams said. 'Like, I can't wait to get on the practice court. My coach and I were already talking about what we're going to work on and also how much better I got so quickly in these last few weeks, too, was kind of like straight up a mountain.' Advertisement Then she paused and added: 'So we have made so much progress, and I expect that there will be more.' Related :
Toronto Star
4 days ago
- Sport
- Toronto Star
Following Venus Williams' comment on health insurance, here's what to know about athlete coverage
Venus Williams reacts during a match against Magdalena Frech, of Poland, at the Citi Open tennis tournament Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass) NW flag wire: true flag sponsored: false article_type: : sWebsitePrimaryPublication : publications/toronto_star bHasMigratedAvatar : false :
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Venus Williams is back and she is not done. She heads to Cincinnati next and maybe the US Open
WASHINGTON (AP) — After Venus Williams' four-matches-in-four-days return to professional tennis was over, after she was loudly feted by appreciative fans even after a loss in singles, the D.C. Open stadium announcer offered a thought: 'We're never going to say goodbye to Venus Williams, are we?' he said. Not yet, anyway. This was not a one-stop hello-and-farewell appearance for the 45-year-old Williams, who had been away from the tour for 16 months before showing up in Washington this week and winning once each in singles and doubles. She hadn't won a match since 2023, and the owner of seven Grand Slam singles titles, plus 14 in women's doubles with her sister Serena and another two in mixed doubles, was celebrated by the spectators and other players. 'I'm sorry to have (fallen) short,' Williams said after being eliminated by 24th-ranked Magdalena Frech 6-2, 6-2 on Thursday night, 'but I know I can play better. And I know I will play better.' Yes, there will be more: Williams next heads to the Cincinnati Open in August. That's certain. And she also might very well be competing at the U.S. Open later next month, if the U.S. Tennis Association awards her a wild-card entry. The USTA already announced that Williams asked for an invitation to play with Reilly Opelka in the tournament's newfangled mixed doubles event. Williams made quite obvious that the whole experience in Washington was fun for her. She loves the challenge. She loves playing tennis. Plus, what's not to like about so much adulation from so many? 'Everything is about her (at) this tournament. All the media, all the fans — everyone is for her,' Frech said. 'She's a superstar. She's a legend here.' There's more to it, though. Because Williams also made clear that this is not merely about having a good time. She wants to win, too. 'There's so many learnings from here. I know exactly what I need to work on, where I can improve. The good news is I'm always in control of the point. The important part is to put the ball in,' Williams said with a smile. 'So this is one thing I didn't do today. Was I in control? Absolutely. Will I be in control of most of my matches? Most likely, yes. That's the place I want to be, so I'm putting myself in that position. That's what counts.' Williams still can hammer a serve, as the series of aces she delivered at more than 110 mph during her straight-set victory Tuesday against 35th-ranked Peyton Stearns showed. Still can pound forehands and backhands, too. As Stearns put it: 'She played some ball tonight.' At the end of her final news conference in Washington, Williams spoke about her takeaways from the matches she played and the work she put in to make them possible after needing to stay off the court last year because of surgery for uterine fibroids. Her answer sounded a bit like a warning to other players out there who will face her. 'I'll reflect on this match and the things I could have done better. I'll reflect on my preparation going into the matches to make sure I'm prime and ready. Those are the kind of things. But more than anything, I take a lot of information from this tournament. So much data,' Williams said. 'Like, I can't wait to get on the practice court. My coach and I were already talking about what we're going to work on and also how much better I got so quickly in these last few weeks, too, was kind of like straight up a mountain.' Then she paused and added: 'So we have made so much progress, and I expect that there will be more.' ___ Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: More AP tennis:
