Venus Williams accepts wild card invite to 2026 BNP Paribas Open

Venus Williams was given a wild card entry to the 2025 BNP Paribas Open, but due to other commitments she didn’t play at the event. This year, it appears she will.

The 45-year-old tennis star has received another wild card invite to the Indian Wells tennis tournament, with organizers extending the invitation — for both singles and doubles — after checking on her availability.

“I’m so excited to be heading back to Indian Wells and can’t wait to return home to play in California,” Williams said. “This tournament is always such a special experience, and there’s nothing like competing in front of these incredible fans. I’ve made so many fun memories here over the years, and I’m grateful to the tournament for having me back.”

Williams, who’ll turn 46 in June, remains one of the biggest, most iconic names in the sport. She would likely be the oldest to ever play in singles at the event, at least in the modern era. That speaks to her remarkable longevity in the game.

Williams made her first Indian Wells main draw appearance in 1998. Following a lengthy boycott of the event that began in 2001, Williams did not return until 2016.

Since then, Williams has played in 2017, 2018 and 2019, before the tournament was canceled in 2020 due to the COVD-19 pandemic. She has returned to play just once since, in 2024.

“It’s an honor to award the first wild card of this year’s event to Venus Williams,” said Tommy Haas, BNPParibas Open Tournament Director. “Venus is a legend of the game, and one of the most accomplishedplayers our sport has ever seen. We are thrilled to welcome her back to Tennis Paradise and give thefans the chance to see her compete in both singles and doubles.”Williams made her WTA Tour debut in 1994, and her 30-year career includes 49 tour-level singles titles,a No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles, and a combined 23 Grand Slams across allcompetitions, including seven in singles. The Southern California native has also won four Olympic goldmedals and captured the 2008 WTA Tour Championship.

Williams has reached the semifinals at Indian Wells three times (1998, 2001, 2018) and entered the singles draw at the two most recent Grand Slam events. She paired up with Canadian Leylah Fernandez in doubles at the US Open, where the duo reached the quarterfinals.

Williams is scheduled to compete in the ATX Open, a WTA 250 event in Austin, Texas, prior to her appearance at Indian Wells.

Andrew John covers the BNP Paribas Open for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Venus Williams accepts wild card entry to 2026 BNP Paribas Open