Serena and Venus Williams lost a thrilling doubles match at the Cincinnati Open on Tuesday, marking their first time competing together in doubles in four years. The sisters were defeated by Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk and American Claire Liu in a match that went down to the wire.
After a slow start in the first set, the Williams sisters began to find their rhythm. Serena, playing her first match since Wimbledon, and Venus, who has played in recent singles and doubles events, admitted to some initial "rust." They went down 6-0 in the deciding 10-point tie-break but mounted a significant comeback. Serena hit two service winners to bring the tie-break back on serve, but Kostyuk and Liu ultimately secured the victory with a double fault from Venus.
"I thought it was fun, it was special, it was good," Serena said of their reunion on the court. "We were starting to feel it. It was really cool to be able to do this again."
The sisters' appearance in Cincinnati comes as they may need wildcards to compete in singles or doubles at the upcoming US Open, which begins Sunday, August 30.
Serena Williams described her knee injury as a "little traumatic experience, but what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." She has played only one singles match since her return. Venus Williams has lost her last 13 singles matches but has had more success in doubles, reaching the quarter-finals of the women's doubles tournament in New York last year. The pair achieved considerable success at their peak, winning 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic gold medals together.
In other Cincinnati Open matches, world number two Elena Rybakina advanced to the fourth round by defeating Magdalena Frech 6-4, 7-6 (7-2). Rybakina has an opportunity to surpass Aryna Sabalenka for the world number one ranking if she reaches the final. Iga Swiatek, the Canadian Open champion, recovered from a lost first set to beat Maria Sakkari 4-6, 6-1, 6-1. Third seed Jessica Pegula also progressed, defeating fellow American Emma Navarro 7-5, 6-2.