Venus Williams and partner Leylah Fernandez saw their unlikely run to the US Open quarterfinals end with a 6-1, 6-2 defeat against Taylor Townsend and Kateřina Siniaková.

Williams and Fernandez, a late, wild-card entry in the women’s doubles, won their first three matches in New York without dropping a set before being overpowered by the top-seeded team on Tuesday.

For the 45-year-old Williams, who returned to tennis from a 16-month layoff in July, the defeat draws to a close her 25th appearance at the US Open having played in this year’s singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles competitions.

“I think what I’m proudest of is it’s not easy to come off the bench,” she told reporters. “It really isn’t, and I have never had a layoff that long. It brought new challenges that I wasn’

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