Former World No.1 Venus Williams turns 42 next month as her career reaches the final stages. Williams has been an integral part of inspiring the younger generation to take up sports. The likes of Sloane Stephens, Coco Gauff, and Jessica Pegula have impressed on the WTA Tour in recent seasons.

The United States is home to two ATP 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami, while also being the venue for the final Grand Slam of the year, the US Open.

Venus Williams welcomes the return of Citi Open on the WTA Tour

The American took to Instagram to congratulate Mark Ein, Chairman of Citi Open, on the good news. Her message on one of her stories read, “@wta back in the capital. Congrats @markdein1 and the @citiopen.” 

Williams will look to participate in the event despite falling out of the Top-500 in the rankings. This year, the venue will have both ATP and WTA events from July 30-August 7. The tournament will have 32 singles players, 16 doubles teams and 16 qualifiers, and will take place at the Rock Creek Park Tennis Center.

Ein posted a statement on social media after the announcement. The 48-year-old was quoted saying, “Presenting a combined tournament with men’s and women’s players has always been the goal for the Citi Open.”

“For the past two years, we have worked tirelessly to bring the Hologic WTA Tour back to our event and we are thrilled to announce both its return to D.C. this summer, as well as another big pro tournament coming back to the United States,” added Ein.

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Expected lineup for WTA Citi Open

The WTA-250 event will act as a warmup ahead of the US Open, usually in the final week of August. In the past, former Grand Slam champions like Naomi Osaka and Victoria Azarenka have been part of the draw. The event returns after a gap of two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when Jessica Pegula won the Championship in Washington in 2019.

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Additionally, the men’s event is a 500-point event with Italian Jannik Sinner winning the title last year. This year, however, Washington will feature an action packed line-up for both the ATP and WTA. With the ongoing French Open, players will play their final event on clay this season before moving to the grass and hard court season.