Four years ago, when asked who her dream mixed doubles partner would be, Venus Williams responded: “I don’t know, I think it’d be fun to play with Nick Kyrgios.”

Turns out, Williams will get her wish.

Kyrgios announced in his pre-tournament press conference Saturday that he will compete in the mixed doubles event at Wimbledon with the former World No.1 Williams.

Venus Williams

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“The mixed doubles pair of the tournament!” Kyrgios said after making the announcement.

He might not be far off. Williams has an extensive pedigree at the All England Club, where she has won five singles titles to go along with her six doubles championships, all with her sister Serena.

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"She's obviously a legend," Kyrgios said. "To see her still gracing the courts of Wimbledon, winning matches at 41... At 41, I don't think I'll be able to honestly hit another ball. She's a legend.

"We've been planning to play for a while now at Grand Slams. It just never worked out. I'm not sure how long she'll play for, so before she kind of gives it up, I do want to experience playing with one of the Williams sisters in mixed doubles. Honestly that's like a dream come true for me."

In 1998, Venus won the Australian Open and French Open mixed doubles titles, both with partner Justin Gimelstob. Her only other trip to a mixed doubles Grand Slam final came at Wimbledon 15 years ago, where she and Bob Bryan fell to Vera Zvonareva and Andy Ram in straight sets.

"Maybe she can teach me some of that calm, the water-type energy that's out there," Kyrgios said. "I'm just going to go out there and have fun. She's an absolute legend of the sport. I'm super excited. I can tell she's excited, too.

"I don't think she ever thought back in the day she'd be playing mixed doubles with the bad boy of tennis, so we'll see how it goes."

Kyrgios most recently competed in mixed doubles with Amanda Anisimova at last year’s Australian Open and before that with Desirae Krawczyk at Wimbledon in 2019.

"I think that we're playing together because we both respect each other's games, I think that's first and foremost," Venus said. "I'm looking forward to the experience. 

"Obviously if I have experience to share, I'm always willing to do that with anyone who might ask me. That's always a given. I'm always open for that. This is not my goal this pairing. I'm hoping we just play well together."

Click here for the Wimbledon mixed doubles draw.