Serena Williams withdraws from Wimbledon doubles with Venus after knee injury
Serena Williams has pulled out of the Wimbledon women's doubles, where she was set to partner sister Venus, after failing to recover from a knee injury sustained in her first-round singles loss.
Knee injury ends doubles hopes
Serena Williams withdrew from the Wimbledon women's doubles on Saturday, ending the prospect of a reunion with sister Venus. The 44-year-old American had been struggling with a right knee injury since her opening-round singles loss to Maya Joint on Tuesday. She posted a video showing her limping with strapping on her leg, and images of large syringes containing fluid drained from the knee. "I did everything I could but unfortunately my knee just isn't ready to compete," she wrote. "The photo of the syringes is the fluid they drained from my knee after my singles match - yikes! The good news is that my knee shouldn't swell or collect that much fluid again. The bad news is that, as hard as I tried, I wasn't able to be ready for doubles."
A comeback derailed
The Williams sisters, who have won six Wimbledon doubles titles together, were granted a wildcard for this year's tournament. Their last Grand Slam doubles appearance was in 2016, and their most recent Wimbledon doubles title came a decade ago. Tournament organisers pushed their first-round match against Solana Sierra and Camila Osorio to Saturday to maximise recovery time, but Serena's knee did not respond. Her singles comeback after a four-year Grand Slam hiatus ended in a 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3 defeat to Joint, during which she tweaked the knee at the end of the first set. The withdrawal, announced on American Independence Day, removed one of the most anticipated attractions from the Saturday schedule.
Heartbreak and gratitude
She expressed thanks to tournament director Jamie Baker and the Wimbledon team for giving her every chance to recover. Serena also hinted at future plans, telling fans to "stay tuned to a city near you." Before Wimbledon, she had played doubles with Victoria Mboko at Queen's Club and with Karolina Muchova in Berlin, but both partnerships ended early due to injuries or early losses.I'm heartbroken to have to withdraw from doubles. Coming back to compete again has been a gift, and the opportunity to play alongside Venus once more meant the world to me.
Other Day 6 results
Defending champion Iga Swiatek was upset by Alexandra Eala 6-7(9), 2-6 in the third round. Second seed Elena Rybakina also fell. British wildcard Arthur Fery advanced to the fourth round with a five-set victory over Zizou Bergs, playing through three nosebleeds.
- Serena loses to Maya Joint in first round, tweaks right knee.
- Fluid drained from knee; she posts photos of syringes.
- Withdraws from doubles; match against Sierra/Osorio was scheduled.
