Williams sisters fall 2-6 6-1 10-8 in doubles return at Cincinnati Open
Serena and Venus Williams lost 2-6 6-1 10-8 to Marta Kostyuk and Peyton Stearns at the Cincinnati Open on 18 August 2026. The match was their first doubles outing together for four years and was played in front of a packed crowd.
The sisters last played together at the 2022 US Open, which was Serena's final tournament before she "evolved away" from tennis. Serena, 44, returned to doubles in June and then competed in singles at Wimbledon as a wildcard. She picked up a knee injury in her first-round loss to Maya Joint at SW19, which ruled her out of a planned doubles return with Venus. Venus, 46, said: "We've waited a long time to get back on the doubles court. Eventually, we find our way to each other," and added, "We give each other so much grace and encouragement. This is our first time playing together in forever, and I think we're really getting [into] our stride."
Serena was playing her first match since Wimbledon, while Venus had played singles and doubles at three hard-court events in recent weeks. The American pair made a poor start, dropping the opening set 6-2 to Kostyuk and Stearns, before recovering to take the second 6-1. They then lost the deciding 10-point tie-break 10-8.
The Williamses fell 6-0 early in the 10-point tie-break but mounted a comeback, with Serena producing two service winners to force the tie-break back on serve. Kostyuk and Stearns held their nerve and sealed the match when Venus double faulted on the final point.
Serena described the second-set recovery as shaking off "a little rust" and said after the match: "I thought it was fun, it was special, it was good. We were starting to feel it. It was really cool to be able to do this again." The sisters will require wildcards to play either singles or doubles at the US Open, which begins on Sunday, 30 August.
Serena said her knee injury had been "a little traumatic experience, but what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" and has played only one singles match since returning. Venus has lost her past 13 singles matches but reached the doubles quarter-finals in New York last year. Together at their peak they won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic gold medals.
In other Cincinnati results, Elena Rybakina beat Magdalena Frech 6-4 7-6 (7-2) either side of a lengthy rain delay to reach the fourth round. Iga Swiatek defeated Maria Sakkari 4-6 6-1 6-1, and third seed Jessica Pegula beat Emma Navarro 7-5 6-2.
Rybakina could replace Aryna Sabalenka at the top of the world rankings in Cincinnati; Rybakina must reach the final to have a chance at surpassing Sabalenka, and if Sabalenka reaches the quarter-finals, Rybakina would need to win the title to become world number one.
