Venus Williams, 45, falls to Karolina Muchova in 3 sets at US Open - ESPN

NEW YORK — Even after two years away from Grand Slam tennis, Venus Williams displayed some big serves and powerful groundstrokes at the US Open on Monday night in front of a supportive crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, before losing 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 to Karolina Muchova.

At age 45, Williams was the oldest singles player at the hard-court tournament since Renee Richards in 1981. She was making her 25th US Open main draw appearance, the most by any man or woman since the Open era began.

Williams wasn't exactly easing into things Monday: Muchova, a 29-year-old from the Czech Republic, was seeded 11th in New York and made it to the semifinals there in both 2023 — when she lost to eventual champion Coco Gauff — and 2024.

Williams started slowly, ceding 11 of the initial 13 points and falling behind 2-0. With members of the crowd shouting, «Let's go, Venus!» and roaring after her winners — and her fiance, Andrea Preti, leaping out of his seat — Williams took the next three games to go ahead 3-2, before Muchova grabbed the next four to claim that set.

But Williams broke to begin the second set on her way to tying the match.

In the third set, though, Muchova, the 2023 French Open runner-up, was simply too good.

Williams won two of her seven major singles championships at Flushing Meadows in 2000 and 2001. The other five came at Wimbledon.

Since making her professional debut in 1994, she's also collected 14 Grand Slam trophies in women's doubles alongside her younger sister, Serena, plus two in mixed doubles, earned a record five Olympic tennis medals and reached No. 1 in the WTA rankings.

Through the years, both siblings transcended their sport and became much more than successful athletes. Serena, who won 23 Grand Slam singles titles,