NEW YORK — Venus Williams isn’t letting her age or anything else, for that matter, get in her way of trying to take home a 15th Grand Slam doubles title, and with three more victories, she will head back to the podium.
Williams and her partner Leylah Fernandez are on to the quarterfinals after needing only an hour and 15 minutes to beat the No. 12 seeds Ekaterina Alexandrova and Shuai Zhang 6-3, 6-4 in front of a frenzied Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The road gets tougher, though, as the duo takes on No. 1 seed Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova, who won Wimbledon in 2024 and this year’s Australian Open, in the quarterfinals.
Each of Williams’ 14 Grand Slam doubles titles has been with her sister Serena, with whom she also won three Olympic gold medals.
For the 45-year-old Williams, it is her first doubles quarterfinal appearance at a Grand Slam since 2016, when she and Serena won their sixth Wimbledon championship.
Teaming with the 22-year-old Fernandez from Canada, who was a 2021 US Open finalist, has Williams back in the spotlight after she took a 16-month hiatus before returning to the sport this summer. The duo has yet to lose a set in the tournament.
“I have full confidence in Venus, and I hope she has full confidence in me during our match,” Fernandez said. “We’re just going out there, playing our game: Be offensive, aggressive and ready for the ball.”
The praise didn’t stop there when Williams called Fernandez ‘the best doubles partner’ she has had outside of her sister Serena.
But Venus also had a message for her younger sister before her quarterfinal match.
“She’s so happy for Leylah and I. She’s given us advice, and we just need her in the box. So, my message is, Serena, you need to show up,’ Williams said while laughing.