Serena and Venus Williams v Linda Nosková and Lucie Hradecká: US Open doubles – live! | US Open Tennis 2022

First set: Williams/Williams 2-2 Noskova/Hradecka* (* Denotes servers)

Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are the No2 seeds in the women’s doubles. Or they WERE: they just lost to the Canadian/Aussie duo of Leylah Annie Fernandez and Daria Saville. Fernandez, you may remember, reached the final of the singles last year.

Back on Arthur Ashe, Noskova serves and tumbles to the court at 30-15. She’s down for a few moments but is back on her feet soon enough, and holds serve.

First set: *Williams/Williams 2-1 Noskova/Hradecka (* Denotes servers)

Serena’s turn to serve. And she continues her form from yesterday as the Williamses head out to a 40-15 lead. But a double fault lets the Czechs back in and we’re soon at deuce. But some strong serves from Serena seals the game for the Americans.

First set: Williams/Williams 1-1 Noskova/Hradecka* (* Denotes servers)

The teenage Noskova serves first for the Czechs – youth knows no fear etc. She sends down an ace to make it 30-15, so not a bad decision all in all. Another good serve helps close out the game.

First set: *Williams/Williams 1-0 Nosková/Hradecká (* Denotes servers)

Nosková took a bathroom break before the match even started. But you’d be nervous facing the Williams sisters too. Anyway, Venus serves first to Noskova. The experienced Hradecká dumps a volley into the net, perhaps she has nerves too, to give the Americans a 15-0 lead. Venus is having a few problems with her ball toss early – it’s a still night and the sun is down so it’s not an issue with the conditions. No matter, they hold easily enough and they’re on the board.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands is in the ESPN booth and has played the Williams sisters in doubles. She says the sisters are hall of fame players based on their doubles skills alone. Mattek-Sands also compliments Hradecká’s serve, which she rates as one of the best on tour.

And the players are out on court. First come the Czech team of Linda Nosková and Lucie Hradecká to … maybe four cheers. I imagine the next pair are going to get a slightly louder reception. But first we get a video presentation in which we are told the Williamses are pretty good at tennis, all things considered. This is good information to know going forward.

And then they’re out: Venus in white and green, and Serena in black. And, yep, there are plenty of cheers. Although I wouldn’t say it’s deafening, perhaps reflecting that this is doubles and the stands still aren’t packed as the evening session crowd slowly files in. Maybe they’re still over the road watching the Mets at CitiField (the Mets are beating the Dodgers 5-3 in the 8th, in case you want to know. Which you probably don’t).

The Williamses opponents this evening are a blend of youth and experience. Linda Nosková is just 17 and this is her first-ever appearance at a grand slam doubles event. She’s currently ranked outside the Top 200 in doubles, although that may be down to her inexperience rather than any lack of ability. Her partner is a veteran of the circuit though. At 37, Lucie Hradecká has been a pro for 18 years, and has two grand slam doubles titles, including the US Open in 2013. She may be past her peak, but she’s still a Top 20 player in doubles, so this match will be no walkover for the Williamses.

We’ve talked plenty about Serena’s likely retirement after the US Open, but is this the last time we see Venus? She is, after all, the older sister and has barely played in the last year because of injury. When she lost to Alison van Uytvanck in the first-round of the singles here in New York she was asked about her future and merely said: “Right now I’m just focused on the doubles.”

Amid Serena’s brilliance it’s easy to forget just how good Venus has been down the years. This was her 91st appearance in a major singles event, a record in the Open era. She also won Wimbledon five times, trailing only Martina Navratilova (nine), Serena (seven) and Steffi Graf (seven). Oh, and her record in Flushing Meadows isn’t bad either: she won the singles title twice in the early 2000s and the doubles twice.

Preamble