Venus Williams will return to the Asian swing at the 2026 Guangzhou Open after receiving wild cards for both the singles and doubles draws, with the tournament confirming her entries on Monday. The 46-year-old American is set to partner Indonesia’s Janice Tjen in doubles.
Williams set for Guangzhou return
Guangzhou is expected to be Williams’ next event following her wild-card appearances in singles and doubles at the US Open. It will mark her first tournament in Asia since she played Tianjin in 2019.
- Williams has been granted a place in the Guangzhou singles main draw.
- She will also contest doubles alongside Tjen.
- The Guangzhou main draw begins on October 26.
- The singles championship match is scheduled for November 1.
The Chinese tournament falls in the last week of the regular WTA calendar before the season-ending WTA Finals in Indian Wells.
Recent matches in New York and Cincinnati
At the US Open, Williams exited in the opening round in both disciplines after entering each draw by wild card. Her doubles campaign in New York included another appearance with younger sister Serena Williams, the 23-time major singles champion.
The Williams sisters took Maya Joint and Chan Hao-Ching to a deciding set in their second doubles match together since Serena’s return to the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz following an absence of almost four years.
They had reunited two weeks earlier in Cincinnati, where their first partnership since the 2022 US Open ended in a loss to Marta Kostyuk and Peyton Stearns.
Selective comeback schedule
Venus Williams resumed her WTA Tour schedule in July 2025 in Washington, D.C., following a 16-month break. Playing a limited programme through wild cards, she opened that return with a victory over Stearns.
That Washington result remains her most recent singles win, with Williams having gone without another victory in her next 15 singles matches. Guangzhou now offers the seven-time Grand Slam champion a new main-draw opportunity as the Asian events approach their closing stretch.
