Venus Williams fell at the first hurdle but said she was proud of herself after making history as the oldest woman to ever play at the Australian Open on Sunday.

The American seven-time Grand Slam champion, 45, was handed a wildcard for Melbourne, five years after she last appeared at the major.

It attracted some criticism amid concerns that it deprived a younger player of the opportunity, which was compounded by Williams losing first-round matches at both her warm-up tournaments.

The ageless veteran showed she still has what it takes in patches, pushing 24-year-old Serbian Olga Danilovic all the way before losing the last six games to crash out 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4 in a gruelling two hours and 17 minutes.

“It was such a great game, such a great moment. The energy from the crowd was amazing. That lifted me up so much,” Williams said.

“She played a great game. Also, some luck there, as well. That’s just the sport. That’s how it works sometimes.

“I’m really proud of my effort today because I’m playing better with each match, getting to the places that I want to get to,” she added.

“Right now, I’m just going to have to keep going forward and working on myself and working to control my errors,” she added.

After getting a standing ovation, the former world number one, now ranked 578, made a promising start, breaking the 69th-ranked Danilovic’s first service game.

But the Serb quickly struck back with a lucky net cord, helping her level the set.

Williams sent down powerful serves and showed no issues moving around the court as the set moved to a tiebreak, where she fell 2-0 behind but rallied to clinch it with a clinical forehand winner.

Danilovic managed to get an early break in the second set, and Williams had no answers, sending it to a decider, where the American raced 4-0 clear.

But she lost focus, allowing Danilovic to battle back to 4-4 before a huge 14-and-a-half-minute ninth game that proved pivotal.

Williams had six game points, but failed to convert, and the Serb took the game on her second break point before serving out for the win.

“Not easy,” said Danilovic. “There was a lot of nerves. I just said to myself, ‘Okay, just play, just take everything out, and just play point by point’.

“I’m very happy I managed to get this one, but it was such a pleasure playing such a legend.”

Williams, who first graced Melbourne Park in 1998, has played only sporadically in recent years.

A five-time Wimbledon champion, she was an Australian Open singles finalist in 2003 and 2017 and won the doubles title four times alongside sister Serena.

Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she lost in the first round in 2015, previously held the record as the oldest woman to play singles at the Australian Open.

Nollywood actress Anita Joseph has questioned married men about their lack of wearing wedding rings.

In an Instagram post, the newly divorcee questioned why men aren’t fond of wearing their wedding rings. She promised to bombard them with quotes throughout the year.

“But men, why una no Dey wear una wedding tings?

This Year una go hear quotes Tire oh”.

Last year was undoubtedly bittersweet for Anita, who ended her five years marriage to MC Fish.

The movie star, in December, had finally confirmed that her marriage had ended, noting how life has a way of testing our strength in ways we never expect, especially in marriage. She revealed that she has been walking through a season of deep reflection, pain, and healing, and was choosing grace, growth, and faith.

Insiders, while speaking to a famous blogger, alleged that the 5-year union had come to an end after facing significant personal and emotional challenges.

It was revealed that the actress lost two babies – stillbirth and a painful miscarriage, and had also endured domestic violence.

Following her divorce, Anita issued a statement, saying she is single and not looking for a partner. She noted that guys have been bombarding her with calls.

Anita noted how 8 years and 11 days with her husband isn’t 8 months and said she needs her head cleared.

Nigerian goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali was the hero of the day, saving two penalties as the Super Eagles beat Egypt to win bronze at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The game ended goalless after 90 minutes and headed into penalties. The Chippa United goalkeeper saved Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush’s efforts as the Super Eagles won 2-4.

Victory for the Super Eagles in Casablanca followed the disappointment of losing shoot-outs that cost them chances to compete at the 2026 World Cup and in the 2025 AFCON final.

Nigeria lost on penalties to the Democratic Republic of Congo last November in a play-off for a place in the World Cup intercontinental play-offs.

Then, three days ago, they lost another shoot-out to fail against hosts Morocco in an AFCON semi-final.

Success maintained a perfect Nigerian record in third-place AFCON matches after seven previous play-offs victories.

Before Lookman scored, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missed the Eagles’ first kick, then Akor Adams, captain Moses Simon and Alex Iwobi scored.

Premier League pair Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush both had kicks saved by Stanley Nwabali before Ramy Rabia and Mahmoud Saber scored.

Egypt made six changes and Nigeria five to the teams that started semi-final losses to Senegal and hosts Morocco, respectively three days ago.

Captain Salah started for the Pharaohs while traditional first choices in goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy and forward Marmoush were among the substitutes.

Attackers Victor Osimhen and Lookman, both former winners of the annual African player of the year award, sat on the bench for Nigeria.

Most Moroccans in a crowd that nearly filled the 45,000-capacity Stade Mohammed V backed Nigeria. They whistled whenever Egypt gained possession and when coach Hossam Hassan was shown on the big screen.

This support for the Super Eagles was attributed to the great rivalry between Morocco and Egypt, both at national team and club levels.

Nigeria initially, then Egypt had spells of dominance in a goalless opening half on a cold, cloudy evening in the Moroccan commercial capital.

Paul Onuachu thought he had broken the deadlock on 36 minutes as he deflected the ball with his head past goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.

However, a VAR review by the Moroccan referee revealed Onuachu had accidentally struck Hamdy Fathy with an elbow. The goal was disallowed and the Nigerian was yellow-carded.

Lookman was introduced by coach Eric Chelle for the second half, replacing Onuachu, and he had the ball in the net in the opening minute of the second period. However, the goal was ruled out for offside.

Nigeria started after the break with a series of attacks. Following a largely uneventful first half, Shobeir — the son of former Egypt goalkeeper Ahmed Shobeir — was forced to make several saves.

Salah seldom threatened and when he did cut in with the ball, the potential danger was quickly averted. Marmoush came on as the play-off passed the hour mark to try and boost a blunt strike force.

But as the match entered the final 10 minutes there was no sign of Osimhen being brought on, suggesting he might not have been fully fit.

In quick succession, Adams, then Marmoush threatened to score, but neither could deliver the finishing touch under pressure from opponents.

Salah then disappointed when offered a scoring opportunity from a free-kick outside the box. He hit the ball straight into the wall and it was swiftly cleared.