Serena and Venus Williams electrified Arthur Ashe Stadium but fell to Chan Hao-ching and Maya Joint in three thrilling sets in their return to the US Open women’s doubles on Friday.

The superstar sisters, whose 14 Grand Slam doubles titles include two US Opens, rallied from a break down in the third set and led the deciding 10-point tiebreaker 5-0 but fell 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (10/7).

Venus, 46, and Serena, 44, hadn’t played Grand Slam doubles since the 2022 US Open and last won a title together at Roland Garros in 2018.

They showed flashes of their brilliant best, Serena proving particularly dangerous patrolling the net but struggling with her serve.

After recovering from losing the first set to level the match in the second-set tiebreaker.

They belted no fewer than 20 winners in the set, holding serve throughout and leveled the match when Joint smacked an overhead long to roars from the crowd.

Chan and Joint regrouped to seize a 4-2 lead in the third. The sisters rallied, but get to the finish line as Taiwan’s Chan and Joint fought back superbly to clinch the victory.

For Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion considered by many to be tennis’s greatest women’s player, it was her first return to the courts of Flushing Meadows since then.

The 44-year-old had returned to major singles play as a Wimbledon wild card four years after “evolving away” from the game.

At the All-England club she lost to Joint in a Centre Court clash that captured the imagination of both diehard and casual tennis fans.

Even that experience didn’t prepare Joint for the atmosphere on the cavernous Ashe Stadium.

The sisters received a thunderous ovation when they took court, all business in understated white outfits.

Every blistering volley and overhead smash from the Americans received raucous cheers, and when they sprinted to the lead in the decisive 10-point tiebreaker the noise was deafening.

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

FCT minister Nyesom Wike has dismissed the ability of Rotimi Amaechi and David Mark to secure electoral victories for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Rivers and Benue states during the 2027 general elections.

Speaking with journalists, Wike pointed to previous electoral cycles, arguing that Amaechi’s political stature did not translate into success for the All Progressives Congress in Rivers, even when he held influential national roles.

He cited the 2015 and 2019 elections, noting that despite Amaechi serving as director-general of the presidential campaign of former President Muhammadu Buhari and enjoying federal backing, the APC struggled to gain ground in the state.

The former Rivers governor maintained that he prevailed in those contests despite what he described as the deployment of “federal might,” stressing that Rivers voters have consistently resisted such influence.

“Are we saying today, if an election is conducted in Rivers State today, that Rotimi Amaechi will deliver Rivers State to ADC?” Wike asked.

“Remember, he was a governor. When I came to run as governor, he was in the APC. Who defeated him? And he was the DG of the campaign then.

“Remember, in 2019, when I was running for my second term, he was the minister of transportation and was the DG of Buhari’s campaign.

“Of all the federal might that came, I won. The late President Buhari never got 25 percent. In 2015, he didn’t get it. In 2019, he didn’t get it. How do you now say that he will win?”

Wike also advised opposition parties to prioritise grassroots organisation over reliance on prominent figures, insisting that electoral outcomes ultimately depend on voters.

“So, we should stop saying there’s one party. So many parties have been registered. Why do you say that this party is not opposition? All other parties are there. You should encourage them to do what the opposition is supposed to do,” he said.

“I will be very glad that they are on the ballot. Let them contest the election. Let the stories be over. The only thing you hear next time is, ‘Oh, the election was rigged.’ That’s the only thing you hear. That’s the only language they will come and tell you.”

On Benue, the minister questioned the ADC’s prospects, arguing that its national chairman, David Mark, lacks the political influence to deliver his home state.

“Take, for example, Benue, where the former Senate president, their so-called chairman of the party, his daughter won under APC, and he was in PDP,” he said.

“Will you now say former Senate President David Mark will deliver Benue to ADC in 2027?“

Senegal’s Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko will begin an official visit to Morocco on Monday, after fans from his country were detained in incidents there at the Africa Cup of Nations football final, officials said.

Eighteen Senegalese supporters remain in pre‑trial detention in Morocco, where they face charges of hooliganism at the match, won 1-0 by Senegal against Morocco after time on January 18.

Their trial opened Thursday at a Rabat court and has been postponed to 29 January and was postponed to January 29.

The two countries have cooperative relations in sectors including tourism, energy, infrastructure and transport, and share strong religious ties.

Sonko’s trip takes place within the framework of a joint commission between the two states, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, a source at the Senegalese foreign ministry said.

A Moroccan‑Senegalese economic forum is planned for the occasion, according to the Moroccan news agency MAP.

Morocco’s King Mohammed VI expressed regret over the incidents and Sonko called for tensions to be defused. Rival fans have continued to trade barbs on social media.