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Serena, Venus Williams lose 1st-round doubles match at US Open

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NEW YORK — Tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams may have played their their final professional doubles match together.

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According to The Associated Press, the sisters teamed up on Thursday to compete in the first round of the U.S. Open doubles tournament in New York, ultimately losing 7-6 (5), 6-4 to Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic.

The Williamses, who share 14 Grand Slam titles as a doubles pair, last competed as partners at the 2018 French Open, the AP reported.

“Playing against the Williams sisters is a special moment for everybody, any time,” Noskova, 17, said after the match, according to the U.S. Open website. “I was really lucky that I could pair with my doubles partner, and we could win and put up a good fight.”

Serena Williams’ next appearance will be Friday against 46th-ranked Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia in the third round of the women’s singles tournament, according to the AP. Venus Williams, 42, was eliminated Tuesday after losing her first-round singles match.

This could be the last U.S. Open and professional tennis tournament for Serena Williams, 40, who announced in a Vogue article last month that she intends to retire from the sport, the AP reported.

“Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution,” she wrote in the magazine. “I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me. A few years ago, I quietly started Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm. Soon after that, I started a family. I want to grow that family.”

Williams and her husband, Alexis Ohanian, share a 5-year-old daughter, Olympia, the AP reported.

– The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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