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Venus Williams' improbable run at the DC Open has come to an end in part. On Thursday, she was eliminated in the second round of the doubles tournament, per ESPN.
Williams and her doubles partner Hailey Baptiste lost to No. 2-seeded Taylor Townsend and Zhang Shuai 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 in a tiebreaker.
Nevertheless, Williams is still competing in the singles tournament and is set to take on Magdalena Fręch in the Round of 16 on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Williams at 45 became the second oldest player to win a WTA singles match. She defeated Peyton Stearns in straight sets 6-4, 6-3.
All this happened as Williams was making some changes to her life. She announced her engagement to actor Andrea Preti.
At the same time, Williams said it would mean more to play if Serena were to come out of retirement. While Serena has gotten much of the glow over the years, Venus has never been too far behind.
Venus Williams adds to her legendary status
Since emerging onto the scene at 14, Venus has amassed a stellar pedigree. She has won 7 Grand Slam singles titles and 14 Grand Slam doubles titles (all with Serena).
In addition, Williams has captured four Olympic gold medals (one in singles, three in doubles). She, along with Serena, helped change the face of tennis with their story, fashion sense, and activism.
Venus was the one who led the charge for equal pay at Grand Slam tournaments. A pursuit which culminated in 2007 when Wimbledon offered equal prize money.
A tournament in which she won.
She still has a chance to go far if not win the DC Open singles title. A feat that would place her in the same category of Jack Nicklaus and George Foreman.
Athletes who achieved big things at an advanced age. Nicklaus famously won the Masters in 1986 at age 46. Foreman recaptured the heavyweight championship at age 45 in 1994.
