Misc Tennis

Venus Williams, aged 43 and ranked No. 697, pulls off an upset at Birmingham Classic

Storm Sanders was Australiaโ€™s hero after she won the first singles rubber before returning for the deciding doubles match alongside 38-year-old Samantha Stosur.

Venus Williams celebrates after defeating Italyโ€™s Camila Giorgi in the Birmingham Classic tournament at Edgbaston Priory Club, Birmingham on June 19, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

At age 43 and ranked No. 697, Venus Williams isn’t done quite yet โ€” especially on her favoured surface of grass. Williams upset 48th-ranked Camile Giorgi 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-6 (6) after more than three hours at the Birmingham Classic on June 19 for her first victory over a player in the top 50 in nearly four years.

Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam champion and five-time winner of the Wimbledon singles, was out for six months because of a hamstring injury sustained in Auckland in the first week of the year. On her return last week, she lost to 17-year-old Celine Naef in the first round of the Libema Open in the Netherlands.

Alos Read | Venus Williams loses to Swiss teen on return to competition

Williams said that it was โ€œtouch and goโ€ against Giorgi. โ€œThere were so many moments where I thought, This match is over, then she would hit a shot from out of nowhere,โ€ Williams said. โ€œShe pushed me to be better than what I thought I could be, and itโ€™s great for me.โ€

“I haven’t played a lot of matches, and it’s great to come through,โ€ Williams added.

There were also wins for third-seeded Magda Linette of Poland, fifth-seeded Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine and Bernarda Pera of the United States in the Wimbledon warmup event.

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