USA's Serena Williams, who is in the bid for her record-breaking 24th Grand Slam title, has pulled out of the second-round game against Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova in the ongoing French Open. She has reportedly suffered an Achilles injury.
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Serena, who is yet to win a Slam since the 2017 Australian Open, won the opening round against fellow American Kristie Ahn in straight sets, 7-6 (7-2) and 6-0. She was one of the favourites to win the title this year, despite being inconsistent for some time and down to ninth in the WTA rankings.
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"The Achilles didn't have enough time to heal after the US Open. I was struggling to walk and that is a tell-tale sign that I should try to recover. I need four to six weeks of sitting and doing nothing. It's more than likely that I won't play another tournament this year," said Williams prior to the match.
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“I love playing tennis, obviously. I love competing. And, I love being out here. It’s my job; been my job. And, I’m pretty good at it still. So, until I feel like I’m not good at it — then I’ll be like, ‘Oh, OK.’ And, I’m so close to some things, I just feel like I’m almost there, so I think that’s what keeps me going," she added.
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Serena's last outing in the Slams was during the US Open, earlier, this month. She had sailed into the semis, before losing to Belarus's Victoria Azarenka in the semis, where she was seen struggling with her Achilles, as she had taped it.
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“I was able to get it somewhat better, but just looking long-term: In this tournament, will I be able to get through on enough matches? And, so for me, I don’t think I could. And, struggling to walk, so that’s kind of a tell-tale sign that I should try to recover," she continued.
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"I always give 100 per cent, everyone knows that. Maybe even more than 100, if that's possible. I take solace in that. I think the Achilles is a real injury that you don't want to play with because that is not good if it gets worse," she concluded.
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