Key events
Third set: *Williams 3-6, 6-2, 1-4 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova wins two quick points but Williams fights back to 30-all, sending the crowd into a frenzy. She then nets a backhand return off Muchova’s 61mph first serve before winning the next point for deuce. From there Muchova rattles off two quick points for the hold, sending Ashe into a hushed silence. The Czech’s dialled-in serve has been the story of this third set. She’s getting 82% of her first efforts in, up from 63% in the first and second.
Third set: Williams 3-6, 6-2, 1-3 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams needs this game badly and she gets it, holding at love while crunching an 85mph ace wide along the way. This rollicking crowd, particularly the upper-level contingent that seems to be screaming “Ve-nus!” before and after every point, is hell-bent on willing her back into the match.
Third set: *Williams 3-6, 6-2, 0-3 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova backs up the break in style, holding at love with four staccato points.
Muchova breaks in second game of third set!
Third set: Williams 3-6, 6-2, 0-2 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams follows an unforced error off her backhand with her ninth double fault of the night for love-30. She fights back to 30-all, but another double fault gifts Muchova a break-point chance. And Muchova doesn’t waste it, ripping a beautiful forehand winner to lock down the early break in this deciding set.
Third set: *Williams 3-6, 6-2, 0-1 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova, who briefly exited the court between sets, strolls through her opening service game.
Williams wins second set, 6-2!
Second set: Williams 3-6, 6-2 Muchova
A shaky service game for Williams, who double-faults again for 30-all then misses on a backhand for 30-40. But she saves the break point with a service winner behind a gorgeous first serve. After letting a couple of set points slip away, she finally seizes on the third when Muchova sends a forehand sailing past the baseline. Arthur Ashe Stadium, now practially filled to its 23,771 capacity, erupts into a deafening roar. We’re headed to a decider!
Williams breaks in seventh game of second set!
Second set: *Williams 3-6, 5-2 Muchova (*denotes next server)
A patch of error-strewn play for Muchova, who finds herself down 2-4, 15-30. Could the nerves be creeping in? The Czech responds with a crisp backhand winner for 30-all, but goes 30-40 and break point down after Williams pounces on a short ball that clips the netcord. Break-point chance for Williams to go up a double break … and she converts it with a backhand winner from the baseline!
Second set: Williams 3-6, 4-2 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Another straightforward hold for Williams, whose serve is really clicking. She’s getting 76% of her first serves in in the second set, up from 48% in the first.
Second set: *Williams 3-6, 3-2 Muchova (*denotes next server)
And it’s an even cleaner service game for Muchova, who rattles off four quick points capped by a 98mph ace down the middle to hold at love.
Second set: Williams 3-6, 3-1 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
A stress-free hold for Williams, who has served beautifully since that nightmarish game with four double faults to let the first set slip away.
Second set: *Williams 3-6, 2-1 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Williams puts a spot of pressure on Muchova’s serve at 15-30, but the Czech follows with a 109mph ace, a 109mph service winner and a forehand winner from the baseline to escape with the hold.
Second set: Williams 3-6, 2-0 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams goes down love-30 for the fourth time in six service games tonight, but rattles off three quick points from there for 40-30. She then caps the hold with a swinging forehand volley at the net to back up the break and bring the Ashe crowd to its feet.
Williams breaks in first game of second set!
Second set: *Williams 3-6, 1-0 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova quickly goes down love-30 on her serve to open the second, then badly overcooks a forehand from the baseline for love-40. Three chances at a break point for Williams. She squanders the first by missing an elementary volley at the net after doing everything right in the point. Then Muchova erases the second and third with back-to-back service winners down the middle to get back to deuce. Williams then earns a fourth break-point chance after Muchova goes long on a passing shot … and this time she converts it when Muchova nets a forehand from the baseline at the end of a 10-shot exchange.
Muchova wins first set, 6-3!
Muchova breaks in ninth game of first set!
First set: Williams 3-6 Muchova
Williams falls behind love-15 with her fourth double fault. A spectator yells out “Come on, Venus!” before the next point, drawing consternation from the chair umpire. She wins the next three points, aided by a couple of errors by Muchova, before double-faulting again for 40-30. On the next point Muchova rips a two-handed backhand that Williams can’t handle for deuce. The Czech is two points from the finish line of this opening set. Moments later Williams double-faults yet again to gift Muchova a set point … but she wipes it out with a 94mph service winner that spins wickedly just out of Muchova’s range. The Czech then wins the next point over a 10-stroke rally to earn another set point. And Williams double-faults! It’s her seventh of the night and fourth of that game alone. Not great. And after 48 minutes, Muchova has taken the opening set.
First set: *Williams 3-5 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova breezes through her service game to consolidate the break. Now Williams will serve to stay in the opening set.
Muchova breaks in seventh game of first set!
First set: Williams 3-4 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams goes down love-30 on her serve again. But she fights back over a couple of medium-length rallies for 30-all. Muchova then hits a cleanly struck winner for 30-40 and a break-point chance. Williams erases it with authority: a 103mph ace down the middle. Now the American double-faults for the third time, dropping to 3-for-13 on second-serve points. It’s another break-point look for Muchova, already her seventh of the night. And this time Muchova strikes when Williams can’t quite get to a volley into the frontcourt.
First set: *Williams 3-3 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova falls behind love-15 on her serve, then 15-30, then 30-40. Another break-point opportunity for Williams and a chance to nose ahead in this first set. But she can’t capitalize. Muchova brushes it aside with a forehand winner from the baseline, then rattles off two quick points for the hold, capping it with her third ace.
First set: Williams 3-2 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams rips back-to-back backhand winners for 30-love, followed by an 87mph service winner. After a double fault, the American then closes out the hold with a 108mph ace. She’s won 15 of the last 20 points with eight winners and two unforced errors.
Williams breaks in fourth game of first set!
First set: *Williams 2-2 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova opens her second service game with a double fault before pulling back with a forehand winner and a 108mph ace. But Williams get the better of a 10-stroke exchange for 30-all, then stakes her first break-point chance of the night when Muchova misfires off the backhand side for 30-40. The crowd swells. And Williams converts with a forehand at the net. Back on level terms in the opener.
First set: Williams 1-2 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Another gnarly service game for Willams, who makes her fourth, fifth and sixth unforced errors to go triple break point down again. She’s really having trouble finding her range early and surely there are nerves at play. She saves the first break point coming in to net after pushing Muchova wide with a sharply angled backhand, then the second when Muchova misfires on a passing shot. Then Williams saves the third for deuce with a sizzling backhand winner clocked at 77mph off the ground. After a couple of deuce points, Williams crunches her first ace (114mph down the middle) followed by a forehand winner at the net to hold and get on the board.
First set: *Williams 0-2 Muchova (*denotes next server)
Muchova calmly backs up the break with a straightforward hold, cracking a 97mph ace down the middle along the way. A promising start for the Czech.
Muchova breaks in first game of first set!
First set: Williams 0-1 Muchova* (*denotes next server)
Williams quickly goes down love-30 on her serve after back-to-back unforced errors on the forehand. She pauses before her toss and the crowd swells in support. She then double-faults to go love-40 and triple break point down. She saves the first of them with a short point behind a booming serve, but Muchova rips a forehand early in the next point to ruthlessly snatch the early break.
The players have completed their tunnel interviews. Now they’ve come through the tunnel onto Ashe, which is a little under half-full with the crowds in the fountain plaza still making their way inside. Chair umpire Katarzyna Radwan-Cho oversees the coin toss. Muchova, wearing an all-purple kit, calls tails. It’s heads and Williams, in a classic all-white tennis dress with matching visor and sneakers, elects to serve first. We should be under way in about five minutes after the players go through their warm-ups.
Preamble
It is hard to imagine the US Open without Venus Williams. For more than a quarter of a century the American has been as much a part of the Flushing Meadows landscape as blue courts, Honey Deuce cocktails and Arthur Ashe Stadium, all of which her 31-year professional career predates. Tonight she will step onto that court for a record-extending 25th main-draw appearance at her home grand slam, facing the 11th seed, Karolína Muchová of the Czech Republic, in an opening-round clash between two players at very different stages of their careers.
Williams, now 45 years old and ranked outside the world’s top 600, has long since guaranteed her place in tennis history. She lifted the US Open trophy in 2000 and 2001, part of a haul of seven major singles titles that also includes five at Wimbledon. Her power-baseline game helped redefine women’s tennis when she broke through as a teenager, and while the results have inevitably slowed, her appetite for competition has not dimmed. This will be only her third tournament since Miami last year, following tune-ups in Washington DC and Cincinnati, but her presence alone carries significance. The last time she faced a top-20 opponent was back in 2023 at Cincinnati, where she beat world No 16 Veronika Kudermetova.
The challenge tonight could hardly be steeper. Muchová, the world No 13, has become one of the tour’s most complete and dangerous performers when healthy. She won their only previous meeting in the second round of the 2020 US Open and has since compiled an impressive résumé on the biggest stages. A French Open finalist in 2023, she has reached the last four in New York for two years running, including last September when she was stopped by Jessica Pegula. Her all-court game, mixing variety, touch and tactical intelligence, has proved a match for the very best, even if injuries have slowed her momentum at times.
Muchová’s rise over the past 12 months has been striking: she was ranked No 52 this time last year, but now sits on the edge of the top 10. Her first-round record at majors is solid (15-9 overall, 5-2 at the US Open), and she will be strongly favored to advance. Yet Williams has made a career of defying the odds and delivering under the lights in New York. Whether this is another fleeting cameo or a turn-back-the-clock performance from an all-time great, the scene is set for an intriguing encounter that blends nostalgia with present-day ambition.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s his lookahead to Venus Williams’s record-extending 25th appearance at the US Open.
