Nick Kyrgios, Venus Williams to Team Up for Mixed Doubles at Wimbledon

Nick Kyrgios announced Saturday he'll play mixed doubles with Venus Williams during the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, which begin Monday.

"The mixed doubles team of the tournament," Kyrgios told reporters.

The 26-year-old Aussie hinted toward an appearance in the mixed doubles draw Tuesday:

Williams is an accomplished doubles player, often playing with her sister Serena in Grand Slam events—the siblings are a staggering 14-0 in major finals as a team and also won three Olympic gold medals—but she also teamed with Justin Gimelstob to win the Australian Open and French Open mixed doubles titles in 1998.

Her partnership with Kyrgios is nearly four years in the making.

Williams, who's also captured seven Grand Slam singles titles during her Hall of Fame career, mentioned him as a dream doubles partner in 2017, which caught the eye of the hard-hitting Australian:

Kyrgios has never advanced beyond the third round of a doubles tournament in a Grand Slam, so it will be uncharted territory for him if the star-studded tandem makes a deep run at the All England Club.

Both players are also taking part in their respective singles events. Williams will take on Mihaela Buzarnescu in the first round on the women's side, while Kyrgios faces a tough matchup with 21st-seeded Ugo Humbert in his opener in the men's bracket.

The mixed doubles draw will be released Wednesday.