WIMBLEDON, England — Serena Williams announced in an Instagram post Saturday that she will not be able to play All England Club doubles with sister Venus.
“I’m heartbroken that I had to give up doubles,” Williams wrote. “Getting back to competing again was a gift, and being able to play alongside Venus Williams once again meant the world to me. “I did everything I could to be ready, but unfortunately my knee is just not ready to compete.”
Along with a video of her walking with her right knee heavily bandaged, she included photos of four syringes that collected fluid from her knee and photos of herself receiving treatment.
Williams, 44, who had been looking forward to returning to competition last month, was given a wild card to play in both singles and doubles on the grass court. On Tuesday, she played her first singles match in nearly four years against Maya Joynt on Center Court. Williams lost the marathon match 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3.
Williams, who has not spoken to the media since the loss, issued a statement about the incident.
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“It was really great to be back at Wimbledon,” Williams said. “I never expected to be here. The atmosphere was amazing. The walk was amazing. I definitely enjoyed it, missed it and enjoyed this moment more than anything else.”
The next morning, her agent Jill Smoller released an additional statement explaining that Serena “injured her right knee late in the first set” of the match but was “doing everything she can to be ready for the doubles match later this week.”
Due to injury, the tournament gave the sisters an extra day to prepare for their first round match against Camila Osorio and Solana Sierra. All other first-round matches in the women’s doubles draw had concluded by Friday and were scheduled for Saturday.
The Williams sisters are 14-time doubles champions and have won six Wimbledon titles together.
Williams has not been seen at the stadium training all week but has been scheduled for Saturday afternoon training ahead of the match. She made her announcement a few minutes before the practice began. Williams and Venus will replace Samantha Murray Sharan and Lanlan Tararudi.
In her post, Williams thanked the tournament for its support, as well as the fans. She has not yet announced future plans, but noted that she will be acting again soon.
“All I can say is keep an eye on a city near you,” she wrote.
46-year-old Venus participated in the mixed doubles draw at Wimbledon. Partnering Kevin Kravets, the pair were defeated 6-4, 6-4 in their first round match on Friday by Lloyd Glasspool and Tereza Mihalikova. Earlier this week, it was announced that she had received a wild card for August’s Canadian Open.