Venus Williams, the champion who's still going strong at 45.

BarcelonaAt 45, Venus Williams isn't satisfied. The seven-time Grand Slam champion is entering her 31st season as a professional player after debuting in 1994 when she was just 14. Now she has received a wildcard entry to return to the Australian Open, where she will become the oldest player ever to participate in the Melbourne tournament. That determined girl who challenged older rivals has become a woman who enjoys tennis, especially after getting married.

Venus Williams, Serena's older sister, grew up coached by a father determined to make his daughters the best players in the world, a story they themselves created for a film with Will Smith playing the father. In the early 1990s, a rumor spread around American tennis courts that two Black sisters from humble backgrounds had emerged, playing exceptionally well and eager to make their mark in a field typically dominated by white girls from wealthy families. Venus would make her professional debut at the tournament Bank of the West in Oakland, California, as a wildcard entry. In her debut, she defeated 26-year-old Shaun Stafford, a player who had won two titles on the tour. In the second round, she faced Arantxa Sánchez Vicario from Catalonia, then the world number two, and managed to win the first set before the Barcelona native rallied. 31 years later, Venus Williams is still playing.

And she will do so for the first time as a married woman, after the ceremony that united her with Italian model and actor Andrea Perti, who holds a Danish passport. They first married on Lake Como and then celebrated with a five-day party in Palm Beach, Florida, with the entire Williams family in attendance. She and Perti had met at a party during Milan Fashion Week in 2014 and were engaged within a few months. Williams explained, "It was a sisters' trip to Lake Como, and I was invited to the party, but I didn't decide to go until the last minute. And Andrea came by chance; at first, he didn't want to because he was tired. We met almost by chance." Within a few months, they were ready to get married.

Now she will be the oldest player to enter the main draw of the Australian Open in the 45-year history of the professional era. In fact, she will return to a court where she hasn't played since 2021, when she was defeated by Italian Sara Errani in the second round. "I'm grateful for the opportunity to return to a position that has meant so much to my career," said the player, who has never won in Australia. A five-time Wimbledon champion and two-time US Open champion, she was a finalist in Melbourne twice, in 2003 and 2017. Both times she lost to her younger sister Serena, who has won 23 Grand Slam tournaments.

Serena retired in 2022, but her older sister continues to compete and will surpass the record for oldest player in the tournament, currently held by Japan's Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she played the Australian Open in 2015. Williams recently defeated Magda Linette in three sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-2) at the WTA 250 tournament in Poland, her first match outside the United States in over two years. Venus last played outside the US at Wimbledon in 2023, but this season she decided to accept a challenge. tour for Oceania and prove that he has enough skill to face anyone.

Between 2024 and 2025, Venus Williams didn't compete for a 16-month period during which it seemed she would retire. However, at the end of 2025, she decided to return to the courts and play three tournaments close to home, one of them the US Open, becoming the third oldest woman to participate, after Czech player Karolina Muchova. In doubles, she reached the quarterfinals and drew crowds of fans each day. She then explained, half-jokingly, that she was returning to play because "I had to come back for the health insurance": "I've been informed that I'm on Cobra, so I'll be back to training... I always go to the doctor, I need this insurance," she said, referring to Cobra, a health insurance plan offered by some companies that allows employees to continue receiving benefits. Williams, who is a millionaire and can afford any medical treatment out of pocket, admitted that while not the main reason for continuing to play, having Cobra coverage was a factor to consider, as it is a good insurance policy.

The record for the oldest player to win a match on the tour is held by Martina Navratilova, who won a match in 2004 at the age of 47. The oldest player to compete as a professional remains American Frank Parker, who last played professionally in 1968 at the age of 52 years and six months. "She's a legend of the sport, so it will be great to see Venus back in action," declared world number 3 and current top-ranked American tennis player Coco Gauff, a woman who has always cited the Williams sisters as "a source of inspiration for many Black women. We certainly wouldn't have so many Black players now."

The sister's return?

Only Venus knows how long she wants to keep playing. In fact, many tennis fans still want to believe they'll see the two sisters in action together again, since Serena surprised everyone at the end of 2025 when she took the first step toward a comeback—she retired in 2022—by registering with the International Tennis Integrity Agency's database. The 44-year-old Serena explained on social media that she has no plans to return, but it was surprising that she took that preliminary step. If she wants to compete again, she must be registered and monitored in this database for at least six months before playing. According to the American press, the Williams sisters are considering competing in doubles at the next US Open, as well as in mixed doubles. especially now that they've changed the doubles format and turned it into a two-day exhibition packed with star guestsVenus participated in 2025. This 2026, perhaps Serena will also return.