Serena Williams retired today in her first round robin match at the Sony Ericsson Championships because of an injury to her left knee.
After having her knee examined, the former world number one has opted to withdraw from the tournament.
Williams took an injury timeout at 4-5 in the opening set and received treatment to her knee. This is the same knee that Serena had surgery on in August of 2003.
Serena appeared on the court today with heavy taping on both legs from her knees up to her hips, but told VERSUS analyst Pam Shriver that it was merely preventative.
She continued playing for a few minutes after the injury timeout, only to retire after Chakvetadze closed out the first set 6-4.
Because of the Sony Ericsson Championships’ unique format, Serena could have chosen to remain in the tournament despite retiring today against Chakvetadze. After a night of rest, Williams she could have returned for her next match against Justine Henin on Thursday.
However, after she sought medical attention, it was discovered that Williams has left patella femoral joint (knee) inflammation, according to Tennis Australia.
She will be replaced in the round robin draw by France’s Marion Bartoli.
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oh ***. not the knee again.
What a shame…I was rushing through the tube just to get home quick enough not to miss this only to learn she’s retired.
Anyways, was it that bad ? Anyone saw the game ?
Dapxin,
I was watching it and she looked pretty distraught over having to retire. She kept telling the trainer over and over again about how she was in so much pain and she didn’t want to make anything worse.
I don’t remember a specific point where it looked like something went wrong, but I’m willing to venture that the taping was not merely preventative. I’ve never seen Serena play with so much tape on both her legs.
Arass,
Thanks for the response. And a nice site make-over
So, I am going to stop hoping there’s a chance for rena further from here. It’s been said that blessed are those that aint hoping for they shall not be disappointed further.
I can only pray she gets well b4 AO but this tournament will definetly miss the williams duo.
I certainly want to see serena vs Henin while Serena is not feeling good
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PS: I v just seen a snippet of the game on Eurosport, she looked pretty distraught indeed and prevention is always a better deal so I ‘ll rather wish she pulls out from the tourney altogether.
Glad I could be of help and thanks for the compliments on the site design!
I was just thinking about what would happen if Serena does play Justine tomorrow. The last time Serena got injured at a tournament (Wimbledon), she had to play Henin in the next round.
That alone might make her think twice about staying in the Championships.
One word sums this.
SAD. Goodluck Bart.
[...] Henin d. Jelena Jankovic Anna Chakvetadze d. Serena Williams Ana Ivanovic d. Daniela [...]
[...] Serena Williams retired from the Sony Ericsson Championships because of a knee injury. [...]