Venus Williams will make a return to the Indian Wells main draw after receiving the first wild card of the tournament for both singles and doubles. The former world No. 1, 45, has not appeared at the WTA 1000 event since 2024.

“I’m so excited to be heading back to Indian Wells and can’t wait to return home to play in California,” Williams said in a statement. “This tournament is always such a special experience, and there’s nothing like competing in front of these incredible fans.”

Tournament organizers confirmed the wild cards after an erroneous announcement last year that Williams publicly denied on social media. This time, her return was confirmed via her Instagram Stories. Williams is a three-time semifinalist at Indian Wells, most recently reaching that stage in 2018. She and her sister boycotted the event from 2002 to 2016 following the crowd reaction to Venus’ withdrawal from the 2001 semifinal and the racist remarks directed at Venus and their father and coach, Richard Williams.

“It’s an honor to award the first wild card of this year’s event to Venus Williams,” said tournament director Tommy Haas. “Venus is a legend of the game, and one of the most accomplished players our sport has ever seen.”

Williams’ career achievements cited by the tournament include seven Grand Slam singles titles, 14 Grand Slam doubles titles and 49 WTA titles overall. Her Olympic resume includes four gold medals, one in singles and three in doubles.

In addition to singles, Williams will play doubles with Leylah Fernandez, a partnership that reached the US Open quarterfinals in 2025. Williams most recently competed in the Australian swing and is 0-3 on the season following first-round exits in Auckland, Hobart and the Australian Open.

Elina Svitolina survived a 3-hour, 3-minute semifinal to defeat Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7 (13), 6-4 and advance to the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships final. The two-time Dubai champion required six match points to finally close out the match and will meet Jessica Pegula for the title.

“Fight like Ukraine” was how Elina Svitolina signed the camera after a three-hour, three-minute battle with Coco Gauff, and fight she did to ultimately emerge victorious, 6-4, 6-7 (13), 6-4, and reach the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships final.

On court after the match Svitolina reflected on what drives her resilience. “It’s very special to see so many flags,” Svitolina said on court after the match. “I’m fighting all the time, and when I’m down and I feel all those emotions, I try to keep in my mind that there are really difficult times that Ukraine is going through. I’m really lucky to be here performing and representing Ukraine, so I try to do it in a decent way.”

Svitolina overcame the disappointment of losing four match points in the second-set tiebreaker and reversed the momentum late in the decider. The turning moment arrived in the penultimate game when she won a marathon point, then secured her sixth break of the match to seal the victory just over three hours after the start.

“Coco is such a big fighter,” praised Svitolina, who will next face Gauff’s countrywoman Jessica Pegula in the final “I was expecting that she would come back in the match. She’s won so many big finals, big tournaments. For sure, I had to keep fighting to keep pushing and I was just trying to win that match. I’m very pleased with the fight and very pleased with the win today.”

Standing between Svitolina and a WTA 1000 title is Pegula, who advanced after her own semifinal victory over Amanda Anisimova. Pegula came back from a set and a break down to maintain a perfect 5-0 head-to-head against last year’s Wimbledon and US Open finalist and move into the championship match. “It’s really, really special to be in the final again after a few years, of course, and to have another chance to lift that beautiful trophy,” said Svitolina, who returned to the Top 10 for the first time since becoming a mother earlier this year.

Jessica Pegula once again found a way past Amanda Anisimova, recovering from a lopsided opening to reach the title match at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. After dropping nine of the first 11 games and missing a 0-40 opportunity to break her countrywoman, Pegula surged to a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory and extended her head-to-head edge to 5-0.

“When you come out slow against Amanda, she can really just wipe you off the court, which is what she was doing,” Pegula reflected during her on-court interview after winning two more total points in the contest.

“I had some break points in the first set, even though it was convincingly the other way, and I knew I could get some break points back. That’s really all I was focusing on.”

The 31-year-old Buffalo native is a win away from her first WTA 1000 title since August 2024. Pegula has started the 2026 season 12-2 and has collected three Top 10 wins so far this year, all against fellow Americans. Those victories include ousting the reigning champion Madison Keys in Melbourne before her Australian Open win over Anisimova.

All three of Pegula’s previous WTA 1000 titles came on hard courts in North America: Guadalajara in 2022, Montréal in 2023 and Toronto in 2024. Seeded No. 4 in Dubai, she is seeking to halt a three-match losing streak in 1000-level finals; her most recent runner-up finish came against Coco Gauff in Wuhan last October.

Pegula’s comeback on Friday combined steadier serving and a willingness to extend rallies, turning a match that looked headed one way into a decisive win. With the Dubai final ahead, she will look to convert that momentum into a WTA 1000 crown.