08/31/26 01:08:00
Printable Page
08/31 01:06 CDT Venus Williams bows out of her 26th US Open with a 1st-round
loss to Sofia Kenin
Venus Williams bows out of her 26th US Open with a 1st-round loss to Sofia Kenin
By STEPHEN WHYNO
AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --- Venus Williams bowed out of her 26th U.S. Open singles
appearance early Monday morning, falling in straight sets to fellow American
wild card Sofia Kenin after not getting on the court until midnight.
The 46-year-old lost 6-2, 7-6 (6) in what could be the final singles match at a
Grand Slam, if not her illustrious career. It was Williams' 14th consecutive
singles defeat dating to her last victory in Washington in July 2025.
Williams has now lost six in a row at the U.S. Open since winning in the first
round in 2019.
She and her 27-year-old opponent waited extraordinarily long to take the court
at Arthur Ashe Stadium, delayed by Novak Djokovic's 4-hour, 36-minute defeat to
Mariano Navone that threatened to move them next door to Louis Armstrong
Stadium. The men's action ended just in time to play on Ashe --- but not before
making some history.
At 12:13 a.m., it was the latest start to a match at the U.S. Open, six minutes
later than the previous record of Aryna Sabalenka against Ekaterina Alexandrova
in the round of 32 in 2024.
Kenin needed just 32 minutes to win the first set, but Williams took advantage
of mistakes and made some shots in the second that gave the late-staying crowd
reason to cheer, rallying from down 4-2 to force a tiebreak before losing
several set points and striking the ball into the net to end it.
Concluding at 2:01 a.m., it became the latest finish for a first-round match in
U.S. Open history. It is the third-latest for a women's match at any stage of
the tournament.
Williams is a quarter-century removed from her second of back-to-back
championships in New York. She also won Wimbledon five times from 2000-08 to
give her seven Grand Slam singles titles.
Williams and sister Serena won 14 in doubles, including the U.S. Open in 1999
and 2009. They are expected to compete in doubles again this year after
receiving a wild-card entry.
___
See AP's full tennis coverage here
|
