WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Venus Williams said she still has fire in her belly after the 45-year-old became the oldest player to win a WTA singles match since 2004 with her 6-3 6-4 victory over Peyton Stearns at the Washington Open on Tuesday.
Having returned to competitive action on Monday in the women’s doubles following a 16-month absence from the game, Williams defeated world number 35 Stearns to claim her first singles win since 2023 in Cincinnati.
The seven-times Grand Slam singles champion is the oldest WTA singles match-winner since a 47-year-old Martina Navratilova won at Wimbledon in 2004.
Williams will next face Polish fifth seed Magdalena Frech.
Emma Raducanu was among the big names that progressed after the 2021 U.S. Open champion beat Ukrainian seventh seed Marta Kostyuk 7-6(4) 6-4 in her opener. The 22-year-old Briton will next face four-times Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.