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London: Serena Williams is in doubt for her Wimbledon doubles reunion with older sister Venus as she deals with a knee injury she suffered in her loss to Australia’s Maya Joint on Tuesday.
The 23-time grand slam champion and former world No.1 fell narrowly short of victory in her much-anticipated singles return, going down 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3 to 20-year-old Joint in a captivating contest on centre court.
Williams, 44, had the break in the final set before dropping five of the last six games as the young Australian – who was ranked inside the world’s top 30 as a teenager before a back injury and subsequent form slump – played the match of her brief career.
Afterwards, Williams caused a stir when she released a statement instead of completing an obligatory post-match press conference, but her agent, Jill Smoller, has revealed the reason behind her skipping media duties.
“Serena tweaked her right knee at the end of the first set, and was therefore excused from her media obligations by the Wimbledon and WTA medical teams,” Smoller said. “She left the site that night unaided and is doing everything she can to be ready for her doubles match later this week.”
There were no visible signs during the Joint match that Williams – who is back playing almost four years after she retired at the 2022 US Open – was playing under duress, and she did not request a medical timeout at any stage.
However, Wimbledon officials said she would “not be able to undertake” her media commitments, and they instead released a statement on Williams’ behalf.
“It was really great to be back at Wimbledon,” Williams said.
“I never expected to be here. The atmosphere was amazing. Walking out was amazing. I definitely relished it, and missed it, and enjoyed the moment more than anything.”
The Williams sisters, who are a combined 90 years of age, have won three Olympic gold medals as partners and 14 grand slam doubles titles together, including six Wimbledon championships between 2000 and 2016.
Meanwhile, Australia’s Daria Kasatkina reached the round of 32 at Wimbledon for the fourth straight year, setting up a clash with four-time major champion Naomi Osaka with a rollercoaster 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, 6-4 victory over Indonesia’s Janice Tjen.
Kasatkina needed three match points, and also had to stave off a break-back point in the final game, to outlast 42nd-ranked Tjen, who rallied from 1-5 down in the first-set tiebreak.
One of Kasatkina or former world No.1 Osaka will reach the last 16 at the grasscourt major for the first time.
“It’s obviously a very tough draw and a very tough match, especially on grass, and I’ve never beaten her before, so it’s not a perfect situation for me, but also less pressure,” Kasatkina said.
“The way she’s playing, it’s tough on any surface, but I think on grass, it’s going to be tough because she’s got very good serves, very good shots, she’s trying to attack all the time.”
Alex de Minaur, James Duckworth, Joint and Kim Birrell are the other remaining Australian hopes in the men’s and women’s singles draws.
Marc McGowan travelled to London with Tennis Australia’s support.
Watch Wimbledon from 7.30pm (AEST) nightly on the Nine Network and Stan Sport.
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