Venus Williams is preparing to return to play at the age of 44 when she was given a special ticket to participate in Indian Wells.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion will have his first official match since March 2024 after a year off injured. She has not won at the Tour level since August 2023.
Her only competition since last year came after she won special tickets to the Indian Wells and Miami Open, but both lost in the first round to Nao Hibino and Diana Shnaider.
Another notable return to Indian Wells 2025 is the two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, after giving birth to her first child last July. She was also awarded a special chance to participate in the tournament.
Venus Williams has won a total of 23 Grand Slam singles and doubles titles, but has never won at Indian Wells in her home country. She has reached the semi-finals of this tournament three times, but then boycotted it for 14 years without participating.
Indian Wells will kick off on Sunday (2/3). Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek are notable names in the women's event, along with Coco Gauff and 2024 Paris gold medalist Zheng Qinwen.
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz are among the stars competing in the men's event. Joao Fonseca and Vietnamese-born tennis player Learner Tien were given special offers after impressing at the 2025 Australian Open.
