SportsLine tennis expert Blake Von Hagen reveals his 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open picks for Tuesday's women's first-round match between Peyton Stearns and Venus Williams

Venus Williams became the oldest player since Martina Navratilova to win a tour-level singles match at the Citi Open in Washington. The 45-year-old defeated fellow American Peyton Stearns 6-3 6-4 for her first singles victory since August 2023.

Venus Williams joked this week that she only returned to tennis to get back on the WTA’s health insurance. Venus Williams just came back from a 16-month break from professional tennis. But she didn’t return because she missed playing — rather, she missed her health insurance.

Champion tennis player Venus Williams says she’s coming out of retirement because she needs health insurance, but industry experts say her example shows how little Americans understand their health care options.

Venus Williams returned to tour-level tennis on Tuesday, defeating Peyton Stearns 6-3, 6-4 at the DC Open and winning her first match in nearly two years.

The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion had not played a WTA Tour match since March of 2024 and had not won one since 2023.

Williams, one of the all-time great tennis players, participated in the DC Open for her first professional match in over a year, and the 45-year-old wasn't just there to play, she was there to compete. Williams defeated world No. 35 Peyton Stearns for her first win since August 2023.

A post-match interview with Venus Williams on Tuesday revealed that the seven-time Grand Slam singles winner is engaged to Andrea Preti, an actor and former model who was seeing her play in person for the first time.