Williams’ US Open dream ends in last eight

US Open 2025

Dates: August 24 through September 7 in Flushing Meadows, New York

Venus Williams and partner Leylah Fernandez lost to top-seeded Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova in the women’s doubles quarter-finals, ending their long-awaited US Open careers.

Williams, 45, and her 22-year-old partner had already knocked down two seeded pairs in the tournament’s final eight and had not dropped a set.

Townsend and Siniakova, who have won two Grand Slams together, were unable to hold back the American-Canadian wildcard duo, winning 6-1, 6-2, in 57 minutes.

After winning the first round of the singles competition, Williams was clearly overcome with emotion as she embraced the standing ovation from the audience.

Williams was described as an “inspiration” and a “legend” by Townsend and Siniakova.

We both wanted to be like Venus and Serena when we were younger. Townsend said it was a pleasure to share the court with her.

Townsend would have been the crowd favorite on any other day if she had played at her home major.

The Louis Armstrong Stadium sported every high and low on Sunday, as she failed to score eight matches and fell to Barbora Krejcikova in three sets to lose to the women’s singles in the final 16.

But she was playing against a partisan crowd in the same doubles match.

After all, Williams has won four titles at Flushing Meadows across all different formats, including back-to-back singles titles in 2000 and 2001 and two doubles titles alongside sister Serena in 1999 and 2009.

She has recovered from wrist and back injuries throughout her career and was identified with fatigue-causing Sjogren’s syndrome.

Since winning Wimbledon in 2016, she had her first doubles quarter-final appearance in the final eight of a Grand Slam and her first singles appearance since reaching the semi-finals in New York in 2017.

However, the match was one-way traffic despite the raucous reception as she proceeded to the court.

The top seeds fought back, claiming 12 of the first 13 points and extending their 3-0 lead.

The crowd erupted into life after their success was met with polite, if muted, applause, and it wasn’t until the fourth game when Williams brought the crowd back together with a brutal forehand winner off Siniakova’s serve.

Williams’ second service game ended with 15 more points, but Townsend and Siniakova, who had only six points on serve throughout the match, had one foot in the final four after 22 minutes.

Williams and Fernandez both managed to get their serve, but with their rivals making just two unforced errors and 12 winners, they were unable to break into the match.

For a spot in the final, Townsend and Czech Siniakova will face fourth-seeded Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens, who have yet to drop a set.

In another match on Tuesday, sixth seeds Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski of Great Britain rallied from set pieces to defeat Monaco’s Hugo Nys and Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-4 to advance to the third round of the men’s doubles.