MELBOURNE, Australia — Nearly two decades after her debut at Melbourne Park, Venus Williams has made a vintage run to return to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the ninth time. She beat the 181st-ranked qualifier Mona Barthel, 6-3, 7-5, in a fourth-round match Sunday afternoon at Rod Laver Arena.
Williams, 36, first played in the Australian Open in 1998, and she made the quarterfinals that year at age 17 (after beating her sister, Serena, then 16, in the second round). Venus Williams has reached the final only once, in 2003, losing to Serena.