{
  "id": 1626224,
  "title": "Serena and Venus Williams return to doubles and lose close match in Cincinnati",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/serena-and-venus-williams-return-to-doubles-and-lose-close-match-in-1626224",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-18T03:53:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Associated Press",
    "slug": "associated-press",
    "url": "https://apnews.com/article/cincinnati-open-williams-sisters-doubles-bd8e216b33148ef0140c94bc6e6278ec"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Serena and Venus Williams returned to doubles play together for the first time since 2022 at the Cincinnati Open, but faced a tough challenge in their match against Marta Kostyuk and Peyton Stearns. The sisters, both 24, were playing in their inaugural tournament together, with Stearns hailing from Cincinnati and Kostyuk from Ukraine. Despite a strong effort, the Williams sisters fell short in a thrilling match, losing 2-6, 6-1 (10-8) in a hard-fought battle. After dropping the opening set, the duo pushed hard in the second, forcing a match tiebreak. Kostyuk and Stearns took an early lead, 6-0, but Venus Williams' double-fault ultimately sealed their fate in the tiebreak, as she and her sister had won a combined 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and three Olympic golds between them.",
  "summary": "CINCINNATI (AP) — Serena and Venus Williams played their first doubles…",
  "key_points": [
    "Serena and Venus Williams return to doubles after 2022",
    "Lose 2-6, 6-1 (10-8) to Marta Kostyuk and Peyton Stearns",
    "Win 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and 3 Olympic golds"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The Williams sisters' loss marks a setback in their bid to regain form in doubles, as they had hoped to build on their storied partnership and past successes together.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}