Venus Williams was eliminated in the first round of the National Bank Open on Sunday, falling 6-4, 6-1 to Kamilla Rakhimova at Sobeys Stadium in Toronto. The match, delayed by nearly two hours due to heavy rain, marked another difficult moment in the 46-year-old’s return to competitive tennis.

Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam champion and four-time Olympic gold medalist, entered the WTA 1000 event with a singles wild-card entry. The loss extended her losing streak to 12 consecutive matches dating back to July 2025. After the match, Williams did not speak to reporters but briefly shared her thoughts with a tour communications representative. “We play outside ... you can’t control the weather,” she said. “But the fans were amazing. They were with me right in every point – that was fantastic. I was just fighting to put the ball on the court. I had some chances.”

Rakhimova, ranked 82nd in the world and 24 years old, capitalized on key moments in the first set. She overcame a break point at 4-3 and then broke Williams’ serve to move ahead 5-4. The Uzbekistani player continued to dominate early in the second set, securing three breaks of serve, and closed out the match in 87 minutes during their first career meeting.

“Playing Venus is not an everyday experience,” Rakhimova said after the victory. “I’m very glad to actually get a chance to play against her. I was looking forward to that match. I knew it was gonna be a centre-court match. I was trying to enjoy my time on it, no matter what the result is. And I think I did pretty well.”

Williams was making her 13th appearance at the Canadian tournament, where she notably reached the final in 2014 by defeating her sister Serena Williams. Currently ranked 664th globally, Venus reflected on her effort despite the loss. “Determination and just fighting,” she said. “It was really fun to be back after having not been here for a while.”

The event on the York University campus was hindered by heavy rain, which delayed play on centre court. Other Canadian players saw mixed results on Sunday: Toronto native Katherine Sebov defeated Japanese qualifier Aoi Ito 6-3, 6-4, while Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro won over Richmond Hill’s Ariana Arsenaulte 6-2, 6-4. Oakville’s Cadence Brace was scheduled to face American McCartney Kessler later in the day.

Bianca Andreescu, Canada’s 2019 champion and a fellow wild card, was set to play Czech Nikola Bartunkova in the evening. Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Quebec, remains the top-seeded Canadian at No. 30 as the tournament continues toward its Wednesday start with high expectations for the home players.