Venus Williams will continue her comeback at the US Open, entering the singles event there for the first time since 2023. The former world No. 1 returned from a 16-month hiatus last month, reaching the second round in both singles and doubles at the WTA 500 in Washington before losing in the first round of the Cincinnati Open.

A two-time singles champion in Flushing Meadows, Williams had already entered next week's revamped US Open mixed doubles event alongside Reilly Opelka. And she has now been included in the list of wildcard recipients unveiled on Wednesday.

Williams last competed in her home Grand Slam tournament in 2023, also receiving a wildcard into the main draw. She suffered a 6-1 6-1 defeat to qualifier Greet Minnen in the first round.

The 45-year-old has not won a singles match in New York since 2019, but she made a triumphant comeback in Washington last month, upsetting then-world No. 32 Peyton Stearns in her opening match, and will be hoping for a fairytale return to the US Open.

Fellow Americans Clervie Ngounoue, Julieta Pareja, Caty McNally, Valerie Glozman, and Alyssa Ahn also got wildcards.

Aussie star Talia Gibson and former world No. 4 Caroline Garcia, who will be playing her final Grand Slam tournament before retiring, will also appear in the women’s singles main draw.

On the men’s side, Brandon Holt, Nishesh Basavareddy, Tristan Boyer, Emilio Nava, Stefan Dostanic, Darwin Blanch, Valentin Royer, and Tristan Schoolkate were granted wildcards.

It’s been an exciting day for Williams. Before receiving a US Open wildcard, it was announced that she would get her own Barbie doll for a second straight year.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion has been honoured as part of Barbie’s Inspiring Women line. Last year, Williams was one of nine female athletes featured for Barbie’s 65th anniversary collection.

With Williams now set to compete in both singles and mixed doubles, it remains to be seen whether she asks for a women’s doubles wildcard. The former world No. 1 teamed up with Hailey Baptiste for her comeback in Washington, and they won their opening match together.

There has also been speculation that Serena Williams could come out of retirement to play doubles with her sister in New York this month. The 23-time Major winner - who retired at the 2022 US Open - has been sharing snippets of her practice sessions on Instagram.

Rick Macci, the renowned tennis coach who previously worked with both Venus and Serena, recently tweeted: “Asked if Serena will play doubles with Vee at the OPEN.

“My gut is probably because at the end of the day Serena can still play even though she has been away. Her serve is still one of the best on the planet and when she competes her mindset is like granite.”

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