At US Open, Venus Williams gives no indication she’s ready to walk away

NEW YORK — In the moments after giving the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium quite the thrill, Venus Williams walked toward the tunnel to the roar of the crowd.

For Williams, it was a slow stroll toward the exit, turning while waving her left hand toward a cheering crowd that desperately and unsuccessfully tried to will the 45-year-old to victory in a match where she briefly put a scare into one of the best players in the world, Karolina Muchova.

“I don’t think I’ve ever had a crowd that much on my side,” Williams said of the sellout crowd at her 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 loss. “Didn’t matter if I was losing…they were just right there with me, and it felt great.”

So, the biggest question facing Williams, who Monday night became oldest player to play a US Open match in 40 years: What’s next?

For the crowd, perhaps the loving energy stemmed from many thinking they were seeing Williams play singles at the US Open for the last time.

For Williams, perhaps invigorated by how she dominated the second set against the 13th-ranked player in the world, there was no indication that the seven-time Grand Slam singles champion was ready to walk away from a sport that she’s played more years professionally (31) than Muchova has been alive (29).

“I love playing,” Williams said, when asked whether her performance in her 25th US Open has inspired her to continue playing. “The level of my game has come up so much since D.C. [Mubadala Citi DC Open in July]. I tried as hard as I could to throw off any rust, but at the end of the day there’s only so much that can really be accomplished in three or four matches.”

And that’s the dilemma. Reps get players prepared for big moments, yet Williams hasn’t played in more than 10 tournaments in a year since 2019. Some of that is age, and few can realistically expect a 45-year-old player to take on a regular tour schedule.

But maybe a few more reps could have helped Williams sustain the high level of play she displayed in Monday night’s second set. She demonstrated pinpoint accuracy with her backhand return, used her length to chase down balls, and fired off a few winners while taking the set (6-2) that had Muchova briefly shook.

“I was stressed,” Muchova admitted after the match. “She played really incredible.”

Yet the magic Williams displayed in that spectacular second set disappeared in the third set, when she double-faulted twice in her final service game (10 times during the match). She eventually lost the set (6-1).

As Williams made her way off the court at the end of her spirited match, a video of Althea Gibson played. It was celebrating the 75th year of her U.S. Nationals (the former name of the US Open) debut.

There was a bit of irony of the images of Gibson on display just behind Williams as she waved farewell. Gibson — the player who broke the color barrier of the New York Grand Slam, paving the way for those who followed — and Williams, a player who (along with her sister, Serena) made the sport desirable for another generation of players of color by the way the siblings dominated the sport.

Does Williams want to continue playing and inspiring youngsters who embrace tennis because of her contributions?

“My goal is to do what I want to do,” Williams said.

And exactly what does Williams want to do? She’ll be 46 by the time of next year’s US Open.

Maybe what she wants to do, if her words after Monday night’s match are an indication, is to play here again next year.