Venus Williams returned to tennis this week, winning her first tour-level match in two years. She says she returned to the court, in part, to keep her health insurance. “I had to come back for the insurance because they informed me earlier this year that I’m on COBRA!

MASON, Ohio — Venus Williams’ return to professional tennis will not just be a one-tournament visit: She was awarded a wild-card entry for the Cincinnati Open. The 45-year-old Williams is participating in her first event in more than a year at the DC Open and won first-round matches in both singles and doubles.

Venus Williams became the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match in professional tennis, delivering some of her familiar big serves and groundstrokes at age 45 while beating Peyton Stearns — 22 years her junior — by a 6-3, 6-4 score at the DC Open on Tuesday night.

Venus Williams has a lot to celebrate. The 45-year-old tennis great Venus Williams revealed she is engaged to actor Andrea Preti on July 22 after playing her first singles match in more than a year. Williams bested fellow American Peyton Stearns 6-3,

The 45-year-old, who lost in the second round Thursday at the DC Open in her return to tennis, has never looked happier after a loss.

SportsLine tennis expert Blake Von Hagen reveals his 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open picks for Thursday's women's second-round match between Magdalena Frech and Venus Williams

What a special week its been for tennis legend Venus Williams. Returning to the court on Tuesday night to collect her first singles win in two years at the DC Open, the 45-year-old Williams became the second-oldest woman in the sport's history to claim victory in a tour-level singles match.

The comments by the tennis great draw attention to the broader crisis of health care affordability and medical debt.