Venus Williams, age 44, receives wild card to Indian Wells

Seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams received a wild-card entry into the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, Calif., the tournament announced Wednesday.

Williams, 44, played in two tournaments in 2024 and lost her first match both times. She received a wild card for Indian Wells last year and lost to Japan's Nao Hibino. Williams also lost in the first round in Miami later in March to Russia's Diana Shnaider.

This will be Williams' 10th appearance at Indian Wells. She is a three-time semifinalist (1998, 2001, 2018) at the event.

In the 2001 tournament, Williams withdrew from a semifinal match against her sister Serena just prior to the start due to a knee injury, raising suspicions that her father, Richard Williams, had decided which daughter was going to advance to the championship match.

During the final, Venus and Richard were roundly booed and showered with insults while watching Serena beat Belgium's Kim Clijsters.

The fallout led to the Williams sisters boycotting the tournament for the next 14 years.

Also receiving a wild card on the women's side was 34-year-old Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic. The two-time Wimbledon champion is slated to make her return from a 15-month absence after the birth of her child.

On the men's side, 19-year-old Learner Tien of the United States and 18-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca were given wild cards.

--Field Level Media