Venus and Serena Williams ousted from US Open in strenuous doubles defeat

NEW YORK — It became evident the moment that Hao-Ching Chan and Maya Joint stepped into Arthur Ashe Stadium for their first round match doubles match against Venus and Serena Williams that they were facing a contingent of nearly 24,000 strong that would cheer the 14-time Grand Slam doubles title-winners with every winner, every high five, and every fist pump.

They were also well aware of who to thank for an opportunity to play at the world’s biggest tennis arena in front of a primetime national television audience.

For one Friday night, Joint and Chan, seeded No. 14, kept their composure, played to their strengths, and ended the most decorated sisters in tennis history’s run in New York in 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 in a grueling three hours and two minutes, after earlier in the tournament Serena lost in mixed doubles with Carlos Alcaraz and Venus lost in the first round to Sofia Kenin.

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The atmosphere was befitting of those playing and felt more like a Grand Slam final than a first-round match, as the sisters strolled out in white outfits, with Serena’s warm-up jacket sporting every year that she has won a singles and doubles title at the US Open, ready for their 10th appearance together as partners in Flushing Meadows.

It was also more than a tennis match; it was a made-for-television event, with high drama throughout, as celebrities and ordinary people craned their necks to take pictures of the sisters, just in case this might be their last appearance at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

There were constant reminders of the sisters’ dominance earlier in their career, when they won two US Opens and three Olympic Gold medals. Venus hit her spots, especially off of Joint’s formidable serve, and Serena grunted her way to several baseline winners and forehand slams, including two that hit Joint unintentionally directly in the face, leading to raucous applause.

Relive the action of the 2026 US Open with dynamic photos capturing the speed, power, and passion on the New York courts.

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates against Roman Safiullin during their Men’s Singles First Round match on Day Two of the 2026 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Aug. 31, 2026 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

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Relive the action of the 2026 US Open with dynamic photos capturing the speed, power, and passion on the New York courts.

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates against Roman Safiullin during their Men’s Singles First Round match on Day Two of the 2026 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Aug. 31, 2026 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

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Anouk Koevermans of Netherlands returns against Caty McNally of the United States during their Women’s Singles First Round match on Day Two of the 2026 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Aug. 31, 2026 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

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Aug. 30: Jessica Pegula of the U.S. in action during her first round match against Romania’s Elena Gabriela Ruse. The US Open singles tournaments begin Sunday in Flushing, New York, a chance for players to reach new rankings milestones in the final Grand Slam of the calendar year.

While Serena Williams is only playing doubles at Flushing Meadows, top seed and two-time defending US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka leads a stacked women’s singles field that also includes world No. 2 Elena Rybakina and the two top-ranked American women, Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff.

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Aug. 30: Slovenia’s Veronika Erjavec in action during her US Open first round match against Italy’s Jasmine Paolini from Flushing Meadows, NY.

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Aug. 30: Donna Vekic of Croatia returns a shot against Talia Gibson of Australia during their Women’s Singles First Round match on Day One.

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Aug. 30: Adam Walton of Australia returns a shot against Yibing Wu of China during their Men’s Singles First Round match on Day One .

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Aug. 30: Slovenia’s Veronika Erjavec in action during her first round match against Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.

The crowd hung on every point, with the constant “oohs and ahhs,” and when Joint, a 20-year-old from Australia, playing much bigger than her listed height of 5-foot-5, and Chan, from Chinese Taipei, stormed back after being down 5-0 in the tiebreak, the Williams sisters’ dream scenario of possibly making an improbable deep run came to an end.

The sisters made their first appearance as partners since the 2022 US Open, entered as wild cards into the main draw, and more than justified that placement in the tournament with their play.

Their service game was broken in the fourth game, only for the sisters to return the favor on their next serve and come roaring back to tie the match at three, but they were then overwhelmed, losing the last three games of the set.

The second set was even more of a grind for the sisters, who have a combined age of 90, as the fifth and 10th games each lasted more than 10 minutes.

With a chance to extend the match to a third set, Chan and Joint twice came back from a break point, and in the tiebreaker, again with a chance to prolong their night, a forehand unforced error, a Serena double fault, had them on the brink of defeat, but they prevailed when Chan’s forehand went wide out of play.

Joint and Chan will next play Nicole Fossa Huergo and Tamara Korpatsch in the second round.