Hold your breath! Perhaps all the tennis fans will now witness the moment they’ve been waiting for such a long time. Venus Williams was last seen in action at the 2024 Miami Open. Following that, he hasn’t returned to competitive tennis, but did that stop her from pursuing her passion in tennis? Definitely not! At the 2025 French Open, she was seen taking up a new role, analysing the matches and commentating during the tournament. Seeing that, some of the fans wondered has she had now unofficially brought an end to her career?

Her reply to those rumors was, “While I haven’t retired and am still open to returning to the court when the time feels right, commentating allows me to stay immersed in the sport without the physical demands of competition.” Talking about his new role, she claimed that she has always been known as a player and has been a student of the game, constantly analyzing, adapting, and learning. But has that time come for her to make a return to the court with a racket in hand?

Well, as per the latest news coming in from the tennis world, the 45-year-old American star, Venus Williams, is all set to take part in the 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open, which kicks off from July 19 and will go on till July 27. This will be her first appearance in this tournament since 2022. Finally, the wait ends for all the tennis fans…the seven-time Grand Slam champion is ready to roar yet again! She last took part in the first round of the 2024 Miami Open on 19 March 2024, where she was defeated by Russia’s Diana Shnaider by 6-3,6-3. With the announcement of her return, now, it’ll be interesting to see if she can bring back her vintage form.

What did she say about this return, though? Venus Williams is listed as “inactive” on the WTA Tour’s website at the moment, but soon after the announcement of her accepting the wildcard invitation to play at the DC Open, she said, “There’s something truly special about D.C.: the energy, the fans, the history. This city has always shown me so much love, and I can’t wait to compete there again.”

Talking about her return, the chair of the Mubadala Citi DC Open, Mark Ein, said, “She has inspired people around the world with her accomplishments on the court and her visionary impact off the court. I know how much it means to our D.C. fans and community to be able to watch her compete in person this summer.” What a year this has been for American women’s tennis!

Along with Venus Williams’ return, there have already been plenty of moments to celebrate for American tennis in 2025

Do you know the last 4 Grand Slam finals have featured an American woman? For example, Jessica Pegula reached the final of the 2024 US Open, then we saw Madison Keys and Coco Gauff lifting the titles at the 2025 AO and Roland Garros, respectively. Now, recently, even Amanda Anisimova also secured a spot in the final of the 2025 Wimbledon. Other than that, in this season we’ve already witnessed title triumphs from Jessica Pegula, McCartney Kessler, and Amanda Anisimova. Now, with the return of Venus Williams, American women’s tennis fans couldn’t have asked for anything better.

Although the rise of players like Gauff, Anisimova, and Kessler may be a good sign for the future of American tennis, is it a moment of concern for veterans like Venus Williams, who will be looking forward to reestablishing her name in the tennis world? Well, Coco Gauff and Venus Williams in particular share a very close bond.

In 2019, Gauff announced her name to the tennis world by defeating the five-time champion, Venus Williams, in the first round of Wimbledon by 6-4,6-4. What a moment it was for the youngster! She has time and against showcased her love and admiration for the Williams sisters through her interviews. But during the 2025 French Open, she yet again got the chance to meet her tennis ‘idol’, who was then doing her commentary job for TNT Sports.

Talking about Coco Gauff and another American tennis star, Sloane Stephens, Venus Williams had then said, “You guys inspire me at the end of the day, too. And you guys have played so well against me, too. These two have beaten me, and they didn’t care!” Hearing this, both Gauff and Stephens yelled out, “I did!” Then Williams replied to them, saying, “Well, it felt like I was like, ‘is this what I deserve?’ This is actually therapy right now.” Venus Williams’ return is no doubt one of the biggest stories in not only American tennis, but also in the tennis world as a whole, but can she match herself with the levels of the next-gen stars like Gauff?