Serena and Venus Williams have avoided potential fines totaling $100,000 after they did not fulfill media obligations following their first-round doubles defeat at the US Open. Grand Slam rules stipulate that players may incur fines of up to $50,000 each for skipping post-match press conferences, unless there are reasonable grounds such as illness or injury.
The US Open confirmed that neither player would be fined. The defeat came after a three-hour match against Maya Joint and Chan Hao-ching.
Following the match, Serena Williams posted images of herself and her sister on court to social media, accompanying the post with an infinity symbol to represent their bond. Earlier in the summer, Serena Williams had cited a "tweaked" knee as the reason for withdrawing from a doubles match at Wimbledon with Venus, an issue that had also led her to withdraw from singles play there. She had stated on social media at the time that she was "doing everything" to be ready for doubles.
Venus Williams had spoken to the press after her singles exit earlier in the week. The Williams sisters received a doubles wildcard for the US Open, their third of the summer. Serena Williams also competed in the mixed doubles event with Carlos Alcaraz, reaching the quarterfinals.
Serena and Venus Williams have accumulated 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic gold medals between them. In their US Open doubles match, they pushed their opponents to three sets, which lasted over three hours. The younger pair of Joint and Chan ultimately won the match 6-3, 6-7(6), 7-6(7) after a competitive contest.