On Monday evening, the crowd at Arthur Ashe erupted in cheers when Venus Williams entered the court. When she walked in, she seemed confident. And her confidence remained just as strong as it was when she was clinching titles in the early 2000s. Though it certainly was not the grand slam return that Williams had dreamed of, the 45-year-old felt “very proud” of how day 2 concluded. In fact, as Williams wrapped up her US Open run under the New York lights, she received a grand gesture from the spectators as a token of respect.

After her first round defeat against the 29-year-old Karolina Muchova (6-3, 2-6, 6-1), Williams slung her red Wilson tennis bag to leave the court. As she walked off, the 45-year-old waved to all corners of the stadium. In return, the onlookers responded with a lengthy standing ovation. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a crowd that much on my side,” Williams reflected.

In fact, the entire stadium kept buzzing throughout the match, trying to drive Williams. The loud chants of “Venus, Venus,” electrified the contest, when she swept through the second set against her Czech counterpart. “I knew going into this match that people in this stadium, people in the United States, people around the world, were really rooting for me, and that felt great,” she reflected.

As she was playing on the blue LayKold court to clinch the second set in her favor, it seemed the veteran might turn back time to serve the Open era’s most powerful storylines. But, after nearly two hours, Williams struggled to maintain her pace, and eventually lost the first round. With this, she left the audience inspired by her grit.

“I didn’t think she was going to play this year, so what do I know?” The commentator said, adding, “We know nothing except that these fans are very appreciative.” Williams waved goodbye to the 2025 US Open, to a full on standing ovation!

Following the match, she expressed her heartfelt gratitude to everyone who came to support her and cheered for her throughout the match.

Venus Williams acknowledged her US Open run with a grateful message

During her post match conference, when asked about her future plans, Williams didn’t show any certainty on retirement. But she did acknowledge how she is grateful to everyone who helped her making a comeback. “My goal is to do what I want to do,” she said. “I wanted to be here this summer. I’m so grateful for all the folks who gave me a wild card. I play an exciting brand of tennis. It’s a lot of fun to go literally hog wild out there and hit as hard as I can.”

She also spoke about how she wasn’t lucky with her health in the last few years. But she was able to make the comeback because of the people who believed in her. “There were a lot of people who believed in me in these tournaments [Cincinnati and US Open]. So, I’m very grateful to have that chance and that opportunity and to make good on it,” stated Williams.

With this, though the 45-year-old Venus Williams fell to 11th seeded Karolina Muchova, she won the crowd in New York through her grit that she showed throughout the match.

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