Where is Serena Williams playing next? A look at her schedule for the upcoming hardcourt US swing
Serena Williams will participate in the National Bank Open this season, which starts on August 8. This will be her second appearance on the singles tour this year after previously entering the Wimbledon Championships in June.
The hardcourt event will also host World No. 1 Iga Swiatek and 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina. Former World No. 3 Simona Halep, 2019 US Open winner Bianca Andreescu, Karolina Pliskova, Ons Jabeur and Venus Williams are also set to feature in the WTA 1000 event.
The 40-year-old has also signed up to feature at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati, which begins on August 15.
The 23-time Grand Slam Champion was included in the entry list, which was released by the Western & Southern Open.
Williams is a two-time champion in Cincinnati (2014-2015) and the last time she entered the tournament was in 2020. She made it to the round of 16 but was bested by Maria Sakkari in an absorbing three-set contest.
Emma Raducanu, Coco Gauff, Paula Badosa, and Belinda Bencic are all set to take part in the tournament.
Both of these tournaments are seen as US Open warm-up hard court tournaments. The last Grand Slam of the year begins the week after the Western & Southern Open on August 29.
Serena Williams' record at the US Open
Serena Williams has a prolific record at the US Open Championships, registering 106 wins from 120 matches at the hardcourt major.
The American made her debut in 1998 and bowed out in the third round. She won her first title the following year by defeating former World No. 1 Martina Hingis in straight sets 6-3, 7-6.
The 40-year-old has won the championships six times (1999, 2002, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014) and finished runner-up four times at the Flushing Meadows. Venus Williams (2001), Samantha Stosur (2011), Naomi Osaka (2018) and Bianca Andreescu (2019) are the only players to defeat her in the finals.
Williams made her most recent appearance at the US Open in 2020. She picked up competent victories against the likes of Maria Sakkari and Sloane Stephens en route to the semifinals but couldn't get the better of Belarusian Victoria Azarenka in the last four.
A Round 4 match to remember!
Maria Sakkari pushed Serena Williams in the 2020 US Open, before Williams eventually prevailed. Watch the full match 👇
The 23-time Grand Slam Champion has been included on the entry list this year and will be eager to make a significant impact after her first-round exit at Wimbledon. She is one Major win away from equalling Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam titles.