Williams Sisters to Reunite in Doubles at Cincinnati Open

MASON, Ohio — Serena and Venus Williams will team up for doubles at the Cincinnati Open this month, marking their first match together since the 2022 US Open and their debut as a doubles pair at the tournament. Organizers announced Monday that the sisters received a main-draw doubles wild card for the WTA 1000 event, which runs Aug. 8-23 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center.

According to AP News, the announcement comes as both sisters prepare for the US Open later this month. Venus, 46, also received a singles main-draw wild card into the Cincinnati field, joining fellow Americans Sloane Stephens, Taylor Townsend, and others in the main draw.

A Legendary Doubles Partnership

The Williams sisters are widely regarded as one of the greatest doubles teams in tennis history. Together, they have won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles — including six at Wimbledon — and three Olympic gold medals, capturing gold at Sydney 2000, Beijing 2008, and London 2012. Their last doubles match together came at the 2022 US Open, where they fell in the first round to Czech pair Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova.

The WTA Tour confirmed that Cincinnati will mark the sisters’ first appearance together as a team at the tournament, adding another chapter to their storied careers.

Serena’s Comeback Journey

For Serena, 44, the Cincinnati Open represents the latest stop in her return to competitive tennis after nearly four years away from the tour. The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion made her comeback in June at Queen’s Club in London, partnering Victoria Mboko in doubles before teaming with Karolina Muchova in Berlin.

She then returned to singles at Wimbledon, where she pushed 20-year-old Australian Maya Joint to three sets before falling in the opening round — her first singles match in nearly four years. The sisters had hoped to reunite in doubles at Wimbledon but were forced to withdraw due to Serena’s right knee injury.

“Her intention is to keep playing; the U.S. Open as well,” Serena’s coach, Rennae Stubbs, said, as reported by Forbes. “As long as physically she can go — and I’m hoping in a few weeks that’s the case — to get her back on the court and hitting balls.”

Venus’s Road to Cincinnati

Venus has taken a more selective path through 2026, competing at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, and Miami before returning to the tour at the Mubadala DC Open last month, where she faced Anastasia Potapova in singles and reached the doubles quarterfinals alongside Diana Shnaider. The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion owns a 12-10 Cincinnati Open record, having reached the semifinals in 2012 and the quarterfinals in 2019.

According to the Cincinnati Open, Venus first played on the WTA Tour in 1994 and has won 49 career singles titles, including seven majors and the 2000 Olympic gold medal. She held the WTA No. 1 ranking for 11 weeks.

Eyes on the US Open

Both sisters are expected to compete at the US Open, which begins Aug. 31 in New York. Venus has been confirmed for the mixed doubles event alongside Alexander Bublik, while Serena is expected to potentially play mixed doubles — possibly with Carlos Alcaraz if his wrist injury heals in time — and could also compete in women’s doubles and singles.

As The Guardian noted, the Cincinnati Open serves as a key warm-up for the US Open, and the sisters’ reunion in Ohio provides a significant test of their form and fitness ahead of the season’s final Grand Slam.

What to Watch For

The Cincinnati Open begins Aug. 8-9 with Community Weekend before the main draw gets underway Aug. 11. Finals Weekend is scheduled for Aug. 22-23, with both the men’s and women’s singles finals set for Aug. 23.

For tennis fans, the sisters’ return to doubles together is a moment to savor — a reminder of one of the sport’s most dominant partnerships. Whether they can recapture their championship form remains to be seen, but their presence in Cincinnati adds a compelling storyline to a tournament that will set the stage for the US Open.