Serena and Venus Williams’ much-anticipated return to the US Open women’s doubles ended in a dramatic three-set defeat to Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Australia’s Maya Joint on Friday.

The American sisters lost 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (10/7) in a thrilling first-round encounter at Arthur Ashe Stadium, despite leading 5-0 in the deciding 10-point tiebreak.

The 14-time Grand Slam doubles champions, including two US Open titles, had not played together at a major since the 2022 US Open. Their last joint title came at Roland Garros in 2018.

Venus, 46, and Serena, 44, recovered strongly after dropping the opening set, producing 20 winners in the second set and forcing a deciding tiebreak after Joint sent an overhead long.

The sisters then fell 4-2 behind in the third set before fighting back to take control of the deciding tiebreak. However, Chan and Joint produced a remarkable comeback to overturn the 5-0 deficit and seal victory.

Serena, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, was particularly effective at the net but struggled with her serve throughout the contest.

The defeat marked Serena’s first appearance at the US Open since 2022 and followed her return to Grand Slam singles at Wimbledon, where she lost to Joint in a highly anticipated Centre Court clash.

Despite the result, the Williams sisters received a thunderous reception from the Arthur Ashe crowd, with fans roaring after every major volley and overhead smash.

Joint said the occasion was unlike anything she had experienced before.

“The atmosphere was surreal,” Joint said. “Being able to play against such legends of the game is super special.”