By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Monday, July 21, 2025
Photo credit: Four Seasons
Venus Williams will celebrate the 25th anniversary of her maiden US Open crown returning to play Flushing Meadows.
Former world No. 1 Venus will partner good friend Reilly Opelka in next month's US Open Mixed Doubles event, the USTA announced today.
The 45-year-old Venus is set to play her first pro match in 16 months in Washington, DC this week.
A quarter century ago, Venus Williams defeated Lindsay Davenport 6-4, 7-5 to capture her first US Open singles crown. Venus successfully defended the US Open in 2001 when she defeated younger sister and 1999 champion Serena Williams 6-2, 6-4 in one of the most-widely viewed US Open women's finals.
Proving the couple that plays together, stays together, Australian No. 1 Alex de Minaur will partner fiancee Katie Boulter at the US Open.
"Yeah, we're definitely going to be keen to try and play if they allow us to and if they want us to," de Minaur told the media at Queen's Club last month. "If that's an option, then we'll definitely be up for it."
One of tennis' top glamor couples announced their engagement on December 23rd on social media.
Earlier this season, de Minaur shared earning "big bucks" to pay for the wedding is one of his driving forces on court these days.
“Realistically, what's driving me at the moment is trying to earn some big bucks for this wedding budget,” De Minaur told Tennis Channel in April. “That's the only thing on my mind—trying to win as many matches as I can, because I've started to look at venues and it's expensive. I can tell you that.”
Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas, who have reportedly endeded their relationship, are no longer on the US Open Mixed Doubles entry list.
Given the US Open Mixed Doubles champions will earn $1 Million for capturing the 2025 US Open Mixed Doubles crown, that could be even more motivation for de Minaur and Boulter to join forces in Flushing Meadows and cover their wedding budget.
In total, 25 teams have now entered the event.
The competition will take place during US Open Fan Week on Tuesday, August 19, and Wednesday, August 20, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, with $1 Million in prize money being awarded to the winning team.
Though Fan Week remains free, fans will need to buy tickets to watch the US Open Mixed Doubles.
The entry window will close on July 28th at 12:00 ET, at which time the top eight teams with the best combined singles ranking at the time will officially be in the field/draw via direct acceptance.
The remaining eight teams will be determined via wild card and announced on a date to follow.
The entry list for the 2025 US Open Mixed Doubles Championship includes the following teams:
Emma Navarro and Jannik Sinner
Amanda Anisimova and Holger Rune
Jessica Pegula and Tommy Paul
Jasmine Paolini and Lorenzo Musetti
Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz
Mirra Andreeva and Daniil Medvedev
Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe
Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov
Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud
Karolina Muchova and Andrey Rublev
Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz
Belinda Bencic and Alexander Zverev
Olga Danilovic and Novak Djokovic
Taylor Townsend and Ben Shelton
Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori
Naomi Osaka and Nick Kyrgios
Katie Boulter and Alex de Minaur
Donna Vekic and Hubert Hurkacz
Gaby Dabrowski and Felix Auger-Aliassime
Demi Schuurs and Tallon Griekspoor
Katerina Siniakova and Marcelo Arevalo
Desirae Krawczyk and Evan King
Su-Wei Hsieh and Jan Zielinski
Iva Jovic and Jenson Brooksby
Venus Williams and Reilly Opelka
“In our initial discussions about reimagining and elevating the US Open Mixed Doubles Championship, we wanted to find a way to showcase the world’s best men and women competing with and against one another, and we were confident that we would be able to get the top players in the game excited about this unique opportunity,” said Lew Sherr, CEO and Executive Director, USTA. “Seeing the teams that have already put their names on the entry list makes us all incredibly excited.
"It shows that the players are behind what we are trying to do, and we know that the fans will love it.”