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Legendary sports star Serena Williams has left fans guessing about her future in professional sports following a recent setback on the court. 

After a painful defeat and a physical setback at Wimbledon, questions have begun circulating about whether she would finally retire again.

Serena recently made an iconic comeback to competitive play following a 4-year hiatus. However, she had to pull out of the doubles match with her older sister, Venus Williams, due to the injury. 

Serena Williams Will ‘Keep Playing’ Despite Injury

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Serena fully plans to continue her professional tennis career and intends to play in the upcoming tournament in New York. Rennae Stubbs, who works as one of the star’s official coaches, shared the news. 

This statement came after Williams suffered a defeat during her very first singles competition since the 2022 season. During that intense three-set match against opponent Maya Joint, Serena unfortunately hurt her right knee halfway through the game. 

The tennis legend’s coach explained that the main goal right now is to get the athlete back on the practice court as soon as she is physically healthy enough to swing a racket. 

“Her intention is to keep playing: the U.S. Open as well,” Stubbs said to AP News. Stubbs also expressed optimism that this recovery process will only take a few weeks to complete. 

“As long as physically she can go – and I’m hoping in a few weeks that’s the case– to get her back on the court and hitting balls,” the coach added. 

The next major tournament is scheduled to begin its main individual matches on August 30.

Serena Williams Pulled Out Of The Doubles Match Due To Her Injury

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Serena officially withdrew from her highly anticipated doubles match with her older sister, Venus, because of the physical damage to her knee. She was originally supposed to head out to a practice session, but she ultimately announced her final choice to withdraw shortly before that scheduled warm-up. 

According to the BBC, the athlete used her social media account to share her deep heartbreak over the forced cancellation, explaining that getting the chance to play next to her sister meant the absolute world to her. 

She stated that she tried everything within her power to get her body ready for the competition, but her joint simply would not cooperate.

Along with her message, Serena uploaded images showing medical bandages wrapped around her left knee, alongside photos of the medical tools used to treat the injury. 

Rumors Of Tension Between Serena Williams & Meghan Markle Continue To Mount

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In addition to navigating the devastating injury, Serena is also dealing with rumors concerning her friendship with Meghan Markle, who was noticeably absent from Wimbledon.  

Public speculation regarding a possible falling out intensified after the sports icon shared a social media video promoting items from the Duchess’s lifestyle brand. 

Rather than creating a carefully polished advertisement as most prominent figures do, the tennis star posted what critics labeled a messy unboxing video that showcased “botched” treats, per The Blast.

Despite admitting her dislike for chocolate, Williams mentioned that she had been eating them anyway because they tasted good. She then went on to compliment her longtime friend’s beautiful handwriting on the packaging.

The casual social media update drew heavy criticism from online fans, who openly questioned why anyone would upload a video that made a close friend’s brand look so unpolished.

Serena Williams Criticized Anti-Doping Regulations

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Amid the speculation of tension between the two longtime friends, Serena was navigating her comeback to competitive play. However, that also came with its own challenges. 

Despite being excited to get back to playing tennis, the prominent tennis champion publicly shared her deep frustrations regarding the strict drug-testing requirements players are required to follow. 

The Blast reported that to properly align with official sport guidelines for her competitive comeback, Serena had to re-enter the sport’s formal testing pool. The iconic athlete openly described the anti-doping system as unreasonable and exhausting.

She made it clear that while she fully recognizes the necessity of drug testing to keep the sport clean, the current level of rigidity makes managing a normal day-to-day life feel completely impossible.

Serena Williams Motivated Herself To Accept Final Invitation

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Although Serena pushed back against the rigidity of the drug testing rules, she still complied and made her iconic return.

However, before making the highly anticipated return to the grass-court tournament, she admitted that she needed a serious mental push to accept the final available spot. 

Despite her legendary status, she openly confessed to experiencing intense self-doubt before making up her mind. 

According to The Blast, Serena ultimately realized that competing as a professional athlete is a deeply rare privilege that very few individuals ever get to experience. As such, she chose to fully embrace the chance to display her prowess on a global platform once more. 

The Serena Williams Eyes US Open After Wimbledon  Loss And Injury first appeared on The Blast