Cincinnati Masters: Williams sisters lose doubles return; Zverev reaches fourth round

Serena Williams and Venus Williams were beaten in their first doubles match together since 2022, while Alexander Zverev advanced to the fourth round on Monday, August 17, 2026, at the ATP-WTA Cincinnati Masters in Cincinnati.

The Williams sisters, who have won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic gold medals together, reunited for the first time since the 2022 U.S. Open but were unsuccessful in their return; Serena Williams is 44 and Venus Williams is 46. The event formed part of the combined ATP-WTA Cincinnati Masters schedule, which featured multiple rain interruptions affecting several matches.

Serena and Venus lost to American Payton Stearns and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 1-6, 10-8; each sister dropped serve once in the opening set, they dominated the second set and rallied from 8-2 down in the 10-point match tie-break before the contest ended on a Venus Williams double fault. "It was fun and special. We kicked off a little rust," Ms. Serena Williams said. "I didn't come here to win this tournament. It's about having fun and I did want to do the best I could." Ms. Serena Williams also commented on the atmosphere: "It was weird to be in a full stadium. This is not my usual Monday night," and added, "This is not forever. It's not long. We don't have to play every week. It's a bit different."

German top seed Alexander Zverev, the reigning French Open champion, recorded his ATP season-best 46th win by defeating Terrance Atmane 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (8/6), finishing the Frenchman, a 2025 Cincinnati semi-finalist, with a backhand down the line. "He was playing incredibly aggressively, hitting forehands all over the court," Mr. Zverev said. "He made it difficult for you to play aggressive yourself."

Men's fifth seed Alex de Minaur beat Arthur Fery 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) after a match interrupted repeatedly by rain; de Minaur was up a set and 5-1 after a 30-minute stoppage before Fery mounted a comeback, and de Minaur advanced despite committing 29 unforced errors. "You never want to go into a rain delay leading 5-1," he said. "It was a tough day with all the interruptions. I can't remember a match that started and stopped so many times. I'm happy with how I found a way."

Seventeenth-seeded Filipina Alexandra Eala lost to U.S. ninth seed Amanda Anisimova 4-6, 6-4, 6-2; the opening set featured a 20-minute fifth game during which Ms. Eala, 21, recovered from a break down before Ms. Anisimova fought back to win. Spanish 12th seed Rafael Jodar defeated Alejandro Tabilo 6-2, 6-1; "A Masters 1000 is something I dreamed of as a kid," Mr. Jodar said. "I'm grateful for the position I'm in now."

Argentine Thiago Tirante beat Spain's Martin Landaluce 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4), having earlier ousted Novak Djokovic in the second round. Brazil's Joao Fonseca withdrew from the tournament with an abdominal injury. Two-time Grand Slam champion Elena Rybakina overcame two one-hour rain stoppages to beat Magdalena Frech 6-4, 7-6 (7/2); "It was a crazy day, to be honest, coming out every time into clouds and humidity," Ms. Rybakina said. There were also victories for Iga Swiatek, who defeated Maria Sakkari 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, and U.S. third seed Jessica Pegula, who beat Emma Navarro 7-5, 6-2.

Alex de Minaur will next face France's Arthur Fils, and Rafael Jodar is scheduled to meet Italy's Flavio Cobolli, the Roland Garros finalist.