Serena Williams’ and Venus Williams’ opening-round doubles match at Wimbledon has reportedly been delayed to give the American additional time to recover from the knee injury. The decision has garnered reactions online, with one insider accusing Wimbledon of showing favouritism toward the American.
Williams began her singles campaign at the All England Club on July 1 against Maya Joint. During the match, she sustained a right knee injury late in the first set. Despite the setback, the 44-year-old played through the pain before eventually losing 6-3, 6-7(8), 6-3 to the Australian. Following the match, her knee reportedly developed swelling and a sprain, which also led her to skip the post-match press conference.
The American was originally scheduled to return to the court with her sister in the doubles event on July 3. However, the first-round match was reportedly pushed back to allow her more time to recover. The Williams sisters are now scheduled to face the unseeded pair Camila Osorio and Solana Sierra on Saturday, July 4.
This decision sparked widespread discussion online, with one tennis insider slamming Wimbledon for delaying the schedule for Williams. Expressing their frustration, they wrote on X:
“How far are we really going to go?! The Wimbledon director admits that he’s giving «as much time as possible» to Serena so she can play doubles because of her knee problem. As a result, they’re having the 2nd round of the others play before the 1st round of the Williams sisters.”
Serena Williams reacted to comments that no one at Wimbledon wanted to draw her name in the first round
Before contesting against Maya Joint, Serena Williams addressed reports that several players were hoping to avoid drawing her in the opening round. During her pre-match press conference, a journalist referenced Mirra Andreeva’s remark that no player wanted to face Williams in the first round. Reacting to the comment, Williams said:
“Respectfully, it’s not surprising simply because I think anyone that’s done, it’s like the big four coming back, I mean, Novak is still here, but no one would want to play them in their first round. I can’t think of anyone that would want to do that. I just think that’s an immense amount of respect, which is yet another reason why I love her,” said Serena Williams.
She added:
“Also just natural feelings. Like, especially at a Grand Slam, you want to warm up, you want to play someone. No one knows how my game may or may not have evolved, what to expect, don’t know much. Those type of opponents are always very difficult to play. I think that has also a lot of things to do with it.”
Serena Williams has won a total of 14 Wimbledon titles in her career, including seven in singles, six in doubles and one in mixed doubles.
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