Venus Williams to play Cincinnati Open as wildcard 

Venus Williams has been given a wildcard entry to the Western & Southern Open, scheduled to be held from August 14–20. This will be her tenth appearance at the WTA 1000 tournament, where she will be joined by four other wild cards.

Williams currently sits in the 524th place in the WTA rankings. She recently trained at the Rafa Nadal Academy in her preparations for the hardcourt season in North America.

The Western and Southern Open took to social media to share the update, writing:

"Sound the alarms! The seven-time Grand Slam champion @Venuseswilliams is heading to CincyTennis this August!"

Venus is yet to win the Cincinnati event in her long and decorated career. Her participation in this year's edition will tie her in second place in the tally of most appearances at the Mason tournament. Last year, the American crashed out of the tournament in the first round, going down 5-7, 1-6 against the 14th seed Karolina Pliskova.

Williams' best outing at the Western & Southern Open was her 2012 campaign when she reached the semifinals, losing to China's Li Na. More recently, the former World No. 1 made it to the quarterfinals of the tournament in 2019.

Williams is also set to make her 12th appearance at the Canadian Open which will run from August 7-13. The seven-time Grand Slam winner will finally participate in this year's US Open from August 28 to September 10.

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Venus Williams slipped in her first-round match at Wimbledon 2023

Venus Williams slips on the court at SW19.

In her first-round clash with Ukraine's Elina Svitolina at SW19, Venus Williams sustained an injury to her already-bandaged right knee. Leading 2-0 in the first set, the American eventually lost the tie 4-6, 3-6.

In a recent interaction with her fans on social media after her Wimbledon campaign, Williams revealed she was finding it difficult to walk.

"I am walking around doing my thing but most of the time, have been off my feet but I’m working on getting back on tour," Venus Williams said.

Venus Williams has won 49 singles titles and four Olympic gold medals in her illustrious career. The 43-year-old took part in three grass court events this year. At the Birmingham Classics, she ousted Italy's hard-hitting Camila Giorgi 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(6) in the first round. Williams, however, lost 3-6, 5-7, 3-6 to World No. 17 Jelena Ostapenko in the next round.

The former World No. 1 also took part in the Libema Open, where she lost to Celine Naef in the opening round.