Sport
Venus Williams out of Australian Open
“She’s been unlucky with the virus thing,” Wozniacki said after her second-round win Tuesday at the Sydney International. “I’m not completely sure what it is exactly, but the most important thing is the health.
“Tennis, it’s a game. I’m sure she’ll come back and fight and try to come back to the top again. But most of all, the most important thing is that you’re healthy. Hopefully she’ll be 100 percent healthy by February.”
The 31-year-old American is a former No. 1 who is 100th in this week’s WTA rankings. She’s dealt with a series of health problems, including a hip injury that forced her to withdraw from last year’s Australian Open, and a left knee injury that kept her on the sideline between Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2010.
Since reaching the semifinals at the 2010 U.S. Open, Williams has played only 11 matches.
After winning her opener at Flushing Meadows in August, which was Williams’ first match in two months — she withdrew shortly before her second-round match there.
At that time, she described the way she’d been feeling this way: “It was just energy-sucking, and I just couldn’t play pro tennis.”
Her younger sister Serena, whose 13 Grand Slam titles include five at the Australian Open, badly sprained her left ankle at a tournament in Brisbane this month. It’s not clear whether Serena will be able to play at the Australian Open.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
