Serena and Venus Williams Receive US Open Doubles Wild Card

Serena and Venus Williams will reunite in doubles at the 2026 U.S. Open after receiving a wild card into the tournament they have won twice together. The sisters are set to return to the women’s doubles draw at Flushing Meadows, where first-round matches begin on September 3.

The wild card brings one of tennis’ most accomplished doubles partnerships back to a major event. Serena, 44, has returned to the sport this summer following a four-year absence, while Venus, 46, is also entered in the U.S. Open women’s singles competition.

A decorated partnership returns to Flushing Meadows

The Williams sisters own two U.S. Open women’s doubles titles, earned in 1999 and 2009. They have compiled a 27-7 record across nine appearances in the event, underlining their long history of success as a pairing in New York.

Their first U.S. Open doubles crown came in 1999, the same year Serena won her first singles title at the tournament. A decade later, they added a second doubles championship at Flushing Meadows during another major run of results together.

In 2009, Serena and Venus won the Australian Open and Wimbledon before claiming the U.S. Open doubles title. They won again in Australia in 2010 and later captured the French Open, a sequence that left them holding all four Grand Slam doubles trophies at the same time.

Across their partnership, the sisters have won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic gold medals, taking the top prize in 2000, 2008 and 2012. They also shared the No. 1 ranking in women’s doubles for eight weeks.

Recent appearances set up latest reunion

Serena and Venus most recently played together at the Cincinnati Open, where they lost in the first round. They had also been scheduled to team up at Wimbledon, but Serena withdrew after injuring her knee in a singles loss.

Their last U.S. Open appearance as a pair came in 2022. They were beaten in the first round in what was expected to be Serena’s final match at Flushing Meadows.

Serena has not entered the singles draw for this year’s U.S. Open, despite winning six of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles at the tournament. She did, however, accept wild cards for both doubles events. In mixed doubles on Tuesday, Serena partnered Carlos Alcaraz, winning one match before their quarterfinal loss.

Why the U.S. Open doubles entry matters

The latest wild card gives the sisters another chance to add to a record that already spans more than two decades at the U.S. Open. Their return also places two former champions back in the tournament’s doubles field after their Cincinnati appearance and Serena’s summer comeback.

For Venus, the doubles entry accompanies a place in the women’s singles event. For Serena, it offers competition at a tournament where she built a major part of her singles and doubles legacy, without a singles commitment in 2026.

With the women’s doubles first round due to start September 3, Serena and Venus will again take the court together at the site of two of their Grand Slam titles. Their U.S. Open wild card marks another chapter for a partnership that has delivered major trophies, Olympic gold and a shared spell at the top of the doubles rankings.