Venus Williams now has a new doubles partner. After a 20-year partnership with her sister, Serena Williams, during which they won numerous accolades, the 45-year-old has teamed up with fellow American Hailey Baptiste for the doubles event at the 2025 Citi DC Open.
The WTA 500 tournament in Washington, D.C., marks Williams’ return to competitive tennis for the first time following a 16-month hiatus. She is competing in both the singles and doubles events at the tournament.
Venus Williams Hilariously Apologizes to Serena Williams After Playing Doubles Match With Hailey Baptiste at Citi DC Open 2025
Williams and Baptiste received a wild card entry into the main draw of the 2025 Citi DC Open. In their first-round match, they faced the wild card duo of Eugenie Bouchard and Clervie Ngounoue, emerging victorious with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-1.
After their first-round win, Williams and Baptiste advanced to the quarterfinals, where they will face either the second-seeded duo of Taylor Townsend and Zhang Shuai or Cristina Bucșa and Nicole Melichar-Martinez.
The signature Twirl 💃@Venuseswilliams ™️ #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/rXphDyVFjv
— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) July 21, 2025
During the post-match on-court interview, Williams expressed her immediate confidence in their partnership, saying that from the very first point she knew that she and Baptiste would make a great team. She humorously added that they should have started playing doubles together years ago, jokingly suggesting that her sister Serena had been a hindrance.
“Wow! I think from the first point I could see that we were gonna be a good team. We just should have started playing earlier, years ago, right? I think Serena was just in the way. Sorry Serena. Hailey is so talented. This year is gonna be a big year for her, so I’m just glad to be on the court with her,” Williams said.
“Sorry Serena!” 🤣
Step aside @serenawilliams, there’s a new doubles partnership in town 🇺🇸 @Venuseswilliams | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/ReeLCfZ8l3
— wta (@WTA) July 21, 2025
Williams also shared a video mentioning that Baptiste was her new doubles partner, playfully warning Serena to watch out.
“I’m just leaving the DC Open after playing my first match here, after surgery with Hailey Baptiste. She’s my new doubles partner, watch out, Serena. And it feels so good to be out here with these amazing fans,” Williams said.
Reflecting on her return to the court, the former World No. 1 noted that the support from fans in Washington, D.C., served as a source of motivation for her, contributing to her and Baptiste’s win.
“Don’t know, but I love that they got from all the fans in DC, it was very motivating. So be back tomorrow for some singles. I am so excited. It’s so good to be playing tennis again,” she added.
Williams, who has won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles alongside Serena, had previously stated that she has retired from playing doubles, mentioning that she would only play that format with her sister. With Serena’s retirement from tennis in 2022, Williams said she had also stepped away from doubles competition.
“When Serena retired, I retired from doubles as well. When you have Serena Williams as a partner you have seen the glory at the mountaintop, you can’t go any higher!,” Williams had previously mentioned.
However, those remarks have been rendered moot as the seven-time Grand Slam champion debuted in doubles without Serena, partnering with Baptiste in Washington.
Who Will Venus Williams Face in Singles 1R at Citi DC Open 2025?
In the singles draw of the 2025 Citi DC Open, Williams will start her campaign against fellow American Peyton Stearns in the first round. Before beginning her run at the WTA 500 tournament, Sterans competed in the grass court season, which included participation at the 2025 Eastbourne Open and the Wimbledon Championships.
At Eastbourne, Stearns began her tournament by defeating wild card Mimi Xu in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in the first round. However, her run came to an end in the second round, when she lost 3-6, 4-6 to qualifier Kamilla Rakhimova. At the London Major, the 23-year-old encountered another setback, losing in the first round to Laura Siegemund with a scoreline of 4-6, 2-6.
During last year’s WTA 500 tournament in Washington, Stearns had defeated Clervie Ngounoue 6-3, 7-6(3) in the first round before losing in the second round to Emma Raducanu, who won with a scoreline of 7-6(6), 6-2.
The first round match between Williams and Stearns at the 2025 Citi DC Open will be their maiden meeting on the WTA Tour. The winner will advance to the second round, where they will face fifth seed Magdalena Fręch, who secured her spot by defeating qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-2, 6-4 in her opening match.
