Venus Williams has made a late change to her doubles plans for the 2026 Mubadala DC Open, with Diana Shnaider replacing Alexandra Eala as her partner in Washington. Williams and Eala had initially been announced as a wild-card team after reaching the quarterfinals together at the Bad Homburg Open during the grass-court season. The updated Washington entry list, however, now pairs Williams with Shnaider.
No reason for the change has been publicly announced. Eala remains entered in the singles competition but is no longer listed in the women’s doubles field. The switch ends an anticipated reunion between Williams and Eala, whose partnership attracted attention because of the age difference between the two left-handed players.
They won their opening match together in Bad Homburg before advancing to the quarterfinals. Washington was expected to provide another opportunity for them to develop the partnership during the North American hard-court swing. Williams will instead join forces with one of the leading young players on the WTA Tour.
Shnaider, 22, brings an aggressive left-handed game and experience in both singles and doubles. Her power from the baseline and Williams’ ability around the net could make the new combination one of the more dangerous wild-card teams in the Washington draw. Williams remains one of the most accomplished doubles players in tennis history. The 46-year-old has won 22 WTA doubles titles, including 14 Grand Slam women’s doubles championships alongside her sister Serena Williams.
The sisters also won three Olympic gold medals together in women’s doubles. The Washington appearance will give Williams another chance to build match time ahead of the larger hard-court tournaments in August. She is entered in both singles and doubles at the DC Open. The partner change also creates an unusual possibility in the singles competition. Shnaider is among the seeded players in Washington, meaning the new doubles partners could potentially meet each other during the singles tournament.
Eala will continue with her own singles campaign after emerging as one of the WTA Tour’s most closely watched young players. Although the Williams-Eala reunion has been postponed, there has been no indication that they will not play together again later in the season. For now, Williams will begin her Washington doubles campaign alongside Shnaider in a late switch that adds another major storyline to the 2026 Mubadala DC Open.
