Venus Williams remains winless in 2026 after exiting first round in Austin | Tennis blog for women

Venus Williams made her long-awaited debut on the ATX opened in Austin, but the week ended in disappointment as she suffered first-round losses in both singles and doubles, dropping her overall record from the 2026 season to 0–7.

The 45-year-old remains a fan favorite wherever she competes, but the former world number 1 is still looking for her first win of the season. At the WTA 250 event in Texas, the American wildcard fell 6-4 6-1 to Ajla Tomljanovic in her singles opener.

The loss adds to a string of early exits in 2026. Williams previously bowed out in the opening round of the ASB Classic in Auckland (against Magda Linette), the Hobart International (against Tatjana Maria) and the Australian Open (against Olga Danilovic).

She also moved on to doubles in Austin, where she teamed up with fellow American Peyton Stearns for the first time. Interestingly enough, it was against Stearns that Williams scored her comeback victory in Washington, DC last summer, marking her return after a 16-month hiatus.

Facing top seeds Storm Hunter and Taylor Townsend, Williams and Stearns fought hard but ultimately fell 6-2 7-6(5). The best-placed duo controlled the opening set with two service breaks. In the second set, however, Williams and Stearns held their serve steady and forced a tiebreak. With the score at 5-5 in the tiebreak, the American duo remained within striking distance, but Hunter and Townsend claimed the final two points to seal the match in straight sets.

In her previous two doubles appearances this season, Williams teamed with Elina Svitolina in Auckland and Ekaterina Alexandrova in Melbourne, but those campaigns also ended in early exits.

After completing her Austin campaign, the five-time Wimbledon champion now turns her attention to Indian Wells, where she has also received wildcards into the main draws of singles and doubles. The veteran’s doubles partner at the BNP Paribas Open will be Leylah Fernandez, with whom she reached the quarter-finals of the US Open in 2025.