Serena Williams withdraws from the US Open to 'heal completely'

BREAKING NEWS: Serena Williams PULLS OUT of US Open after tearing her hamstring at Wimbledon, in a big blow to her bid to reach a record 42 Grand Slam titles, a month before her 40th birthday

  • Serena Williams has withdrawn from the US Open to allow her ‘body to heal’
  • She was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon after suffering an on-court injury
  • Williams tore her hamstring during her first set of the summer competition  
  • As a result, she will forego the US Open after ‘consulting with her medical team’  
  • Williams admitted she was said as New York is one of her favourite places to play 

Serena Williams has withdrawn from the US Open to allow her ‘body to heal completely’ after tearing her hamstring at Wimbledon. 

Williams suffered an early exit from Wimbledon after sustaining an on-court injury. Her withdrawal from the competition marked only the second time in career that she has retired from a major tournament match.  

As a result, she will now forego for the Open in a bid to get healthy after ‘consulting with her medical team’.   

Serena Williams has withdrawn from the US Open to allow her ‘body to heal completely’

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A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams)

Williams released as statement on her Instagram saying: ‘After careful consideration and following the advice of my doctors and medical team, I have decided to withdraw from the US open to allow my body to heal completely from a torn hamstring. 

‘New York is one of the most exciting cities in the world and one of my favorite places to play – I’ll miss seeing the fans but will be cheering everyone on from afar. 

‘Thank you for your continued support and love. I’ll see you soon.’  

Williams tore her hamstring at Wimbledon early this year and was forced to retire injured

The American walked off the court to a standing ovation (above) following the decision

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The decision comes after a frustrating summer for Williams, who was forced to retire from Wimbledon due to the hamstring. 

The seven-time Wimbledon champion and four-time runner-up was seen with a heavily taped thigh and ankle during her match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.   

A visibly pained Williams broke Sasnovich early in the set before slipping and falling in the fifth game and hobbling to her chair.

Williams managed to return, albeit with a noticeable limp, and attempted to carry on before having to retire with the set tied 3-3. 

Later Williams, a four-time Olympic gold medalist, was forced to withdraw from the Tokyo Games due to her injuries. 

She had hope to return to the court in New York in a bid to reach a record 42 Grand Slam titles before her 40th birthday next month, but now her future remains in limbo.  

Williams is the latest big name to pull out of the tournament after reigning men’s champion Dominic Thiem and four-times winner Rafa Nadal ended their 2021 season due to injuries. Roger Federer, meanwhile, has been sidelined this summer after struggling to return from a pair of knee injuries in 2020. 

Due to those injuries, 2021 will mark the first US Open played without Williams, Federer, or Nadal since 1997, according to Ben Rothenberg of The New York Times.   

A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams)

Rafael Nadal also announced that he will miss the US Open and remainder of the tennis season

Williams is not the first athlete to withdraw from the tournament – with the men’s defending champion Dominic Thiem, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal previously announcing their decision to pull out of this year’s final Grand Slam.

Nadal will not challenge world number one Novak Djokovic at the US Open after withdrawing from the tournament and calling time on his season because of a foot injury that he says has been troubling him since 2005. 

The 20-time grand slam champion, who won his fourth Flushing Meadows title in 2019, is still being plagued by the problem that flared up at the French Open, forcing him to miss Wimbledon and the Olympics.

As a result, Novak Djokovic will go into the tournament, which begins at the end of the month, as red-hot favourite to complete the calendar Grand Slam. 

More to follow… 




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