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Organizers of the Indian Wells tennis tournament have apologized to Venus Williams and her playing partner Leylah Fernandez after a clerical error before the women’s doubles draw denied the wildcard pair the opportunity to compete.
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Williams, 45, was beaten in the opening round of the singles tournament by Diane Parry while Canadian Fernandez lost to Katerina Siniakova in the second round.
However, organizers said they had made a mistake and had not certified the doubles wildcard entry before the draw.
“We worked with the WTA supervisor to review all available options, but as the draw had already been made, the error could not be corrected,” organizers said in a statement.
“We apologized to Venus, Leylah and their teams for the matter, and regret that our fans were unable to see this duo compete at Indian Wells this year.”
Fans were eager to see the pair in doubles action after they reached the quarterfinals of the US Open last year, losing to runners-up Taylor Townsend and Siniakova.
However, they will be competing in mixed doubles, with Williams teaming up with American compatriot Christian Harrison and Fernandez with Australian John Peers.
