WIMBLEDON, England -- In a bizarre scene at Wimbledon, Serena Williams appeared disoriented in a first-round doubles match with sister Venus and was forced to retire after three games Tuesday.
LONDON (AP) — It was clear something was wrong with Serena Williams from the moment she began trying to warm up for her Wimbledon doubles match Tuesday.
She weakly pushed volleys into the net from a couple of feet away. She whiffed on practice strokes. She even had trouble with the simple task of collecting tennis balls from the ball kids.
After Williams was examined for about 10 minutes on the sideline by medical staff, including a check of her blood pressure, the match began. After three games, though, an out-of-sorts Williams and her partner, older sister Venus, stopped. The tournament referee's office and WTA later said Serena, who lost in singles Saturday, had a viral illness.
"I am heartbroken I'm not able to continue in the tournament," Serena said in a statement. "I thought I could rally this morning because I really wanted to compete, but this bug just got the best of me."
About 1 1/2 hours after leaving the court, Serena walked out of the All England Club, still wearing her white match outfit, and with a tournament towel draped around her waist. She got into a car and was driven away.
"Unfortunately, Serena has been feeling unwell for the past few days and she just couldn't play to her potential today," Venus said. "I'm really proud of her for trying because we just love playing doubles together."
