Inspired by the return of her sister, Venus Williams made one of her own at Wimbledon on Friday.
Williams and her partner Jamie Murray won a mixed doubles game that was the first in any tennis discipline in more than 10 months for the seven-time Grand Slam singles champion.
She defeated Eliza Rosolska and Michael Venus 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-3 in a first round match on No. 1 Court.
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“(Entering) It was definitely last minute. Just inspired by Serena,” said Williams, 42.
Serena Williams played her first match in a year, losing to Harmony Tan on Center Court on Tuesday night.
Jamie Murray, who also has a famous tennis brother, said that Venus’s camp asked him to play.
“I think you played very well,” Murray said at their joint news conference. “Like, she hasn’t played in a long time. First match, big court, lots of people. It’s not easy. It was a great experience playing with Venus Williams. When will I get a chance to do that?”
Venus said he “has no plans to play. I saw the grass and I got excited … I haven’t played in a year so you don’t know what you’re going to get.”
The new pair’s siblings, Serena Williams and Andy Murray, joined mixed doubles at Wimbledon in 2019 and advanced to the third round.
Williams’ five major singles titles came at Wimbledon. She has also won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles with sister Serena, including six at the All England Club. Apart from this, he has two big titles in mixed doubles.
In Grand Slam tournaments, Jamie Murray has won two doubles titles and five mixed doubles titles.
When asked what her future holds, Venus echoed her sister’s post-match comments.
“You never know where I’ll pop up,” she said.
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