Tennis-Serena coaching from afar as Venus and Fernandez reach US Open doubles quarters

Sep 1, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; Venus Williams (USA) reaches for a volley in front of partner Leylah Fernandez (CAN) against Ekaterina Alexandrova and Shuai Zhang (CHN) (both not pictured) on day nine of the 2025 US Open tennis championships at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Serena Williams may not be playing the U.S. Open anymore, but her presence still loomed large on Monday, with Venus Williams revealing her younger sister has been coaching from afar as she and Leylah Fernandez surged into the doubles quarter-finals.

Wildcards Venus and Fernandez claimed a 6-3 6-4 win over 12th seeds Ekaterina Alexandrova and Zhang Shuai, as the American secured her first major doubles quarter-final since 2016 and another chapter in the unlikely run of the 45-year-old and her 22-year-old Canadian partner.