The tennis world is buzzing after Serena and Venus Williams were awarded a wildcard into the women's doubles draw at the Cincinnati Open, running from August 11-23 in Ohio. It marks the first time the legendary siblings will compete together in doubles since the 2022 US Open, and the first time they have ever partnered up at this particular event.
The pairing was originally slated to team up at Wimbledon this summer, but those plans unraveled when Serena suffered a knee injury during her first-round singles loss to Australia's Maya Joint. That setback forced both sisters to withdraw from the All England Club doubles draw, leaving fans disappointed after Serena's remarkable return to professional tennis following nearly four years away.
Despite missing Wimbledon's doubles competition, Serena had been building her grass-court form beforehand, competing in doubles at Queen's Club and the Berlin Open, though not alongside Venus on either occasion. Now reunited on the hard courts of Cincinnati, the duo brings a combined doubles resume that includes 14 Grand Slam titles and three Olympic gold medals.
For Venus, 46, there is additional motivation: she has also received a wildcard into the singles draw, where she is searching for her first singles win of 2026 after dropping first-round matches at all eight tournaments she has entered this season.
Perhaps the biggest storyline surrounding Cincinnati is what it could mean for Serena's immediate future. A successful showing there could open the door for a return to Flushing Meadows at the US Open, where she currently sits one Grand Slam singles title short of the all-time record of 24, jointly held by Margaret Court and Novak Djokovic.
TennisDraw users will certainly be watching this wildcard pairing closely when filling out their Cincinnati bracket picks.