Serena Williams's unlikely reappearance on Arthur Ashe Stadium is over. Pairing with Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open's revamped mixed doubles event, the 44-year-old American was beaten in the quarter-finals on Tuesday, going down 5-4(4), 4-1 to Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli.
It was Williams's first match on the tournament's showcase court since she walked away from the sport following the 2022 US Open, and the crowd treated it as the occasion it was — even as her run alongside the world No. 2 lasted only two matches.
Williams and Alcaraz had opened with a straightforward win over Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool, 5-3, 4-1, in the tournament's short-set format that has made the event a magnet for singles stars rather than specialist doubles pairs. Against Bencic and Cobolli, the tighter margins told: Cobolli closed out a tiebreak to seal the first set, and the Italian-Swiss pair carried that momentum through the second.
"Playing against Serena and Carlos at Arthur Ashe isn't straightforward," Cobolli said afterwards, acknowledging the pressure of facing two of the sport's biggest names on its biggest stage. Bencic, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold medalist, called it an honour to share the court with them.
For Williams, simply being back was the story. "I never expected to be back on this court, so it was just a really cool moment," she said after the loss.
Alcaraz, who had never partnered Williams before this week, admitted he had been nervous walking out alongside her. "I was really nervous playing alongside Serena," he said. "She made it really easy for me just to try to enjoy it, go for it every time." He added that the defeat did little to dampen the experience: "I feel great. Even if I lost, playing with her, I'm feeling amazing."
The result was one of several upsets in an unpredictable mixed doubles draw this year. Top seeds Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka were knocked out in the first round, while Gael Monfils and Elina Svitolina advanced to the semi-finals.
Bencic and Cobolli move on in the draw, while Williams's brief comeback appearance — billed as a one-off rather than a signal of any wider return — ends here. Alcaraz, meanwhile, turns his attention to the singles main draw, where he arrives as one of the tournament favourites.
