Injury forces Serena to quit
STANFORD, Calif. — Serena Williams’ busy summer schedule caught up with her, making her the latest U. S. Olympian dealing with a knee injury as the Beijing Games approach.
Williams injured her left knee and pulled out of the Bank of the West Classic on Saturday, becoming the third singles player on the U. S. women’s tennis team with a knee injury, joining her sister Venus and Lindsay Davenport.
Williams retired from her match after losing the first set and falling behind in the second set of her semifinal against qualifier Aleksandra Wozniak.
“It was hurting in practice and I didn’t really practice too long because it was hurting,” Williams said.
She lasted only 46 minutes before pulling out of the match trailing, 2-6, 1-3. Williams said the injury is different than one that forced her to undergo surgery on her left knee in 2003 and miss eight months. But that knee has bothered her since, forcing her to drop out of the Athens Olympics and to miss time in 2006.
At the Indianapolis Tennis Championships, top-seeded James Blake struggled after a rain delay and was upset by defending champion Dimitry Tursunov, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, in the semifinals.
