Serena Williams calls hamstrings ‘better’, plans to play at Australian Open
November 5 (UPI) – Serena Williams says she feels “much better” since suffering a hamstring injury at Wimbledon 2021, and she plans to play at the 2022 Australian Open, the next Grand Slam tournament on the calendar tennis.
“Hamstrings are better,” Williams said in an appearance Thursday Jimmy Kimmel Live. “It took a long time. It took forever, but it’s a lot better now.”
Williams, 40, also opened up about his daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., and the upcoming movie. King Richard. The film, which debuts on November 19, details the tennis rise of the Williams sisters and their relationship with their father, Richard.
Williams tore her right thigh in the opening set of her first-round match against Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich on June 29 at Wimbledon 2021. She missed the postponed 2020 Summer Games and the 2021 US Open.
Williams tried to fight the hamstring injury and finish his game against Sasnovich, but slipped several times and retired. She said she “heard” her hamstring tear when she went for the shot.
“It was sad to miss that one,” Williams told Kimmel, when asked about the 2021 US Open. “I went the extra mile to try and get there, but it didn’t work.”
Williams said “yes, definitely” when asked if she would be ready for the Australian Open. The first Grand Slam tournament on the tennis calendar will take place January 17-30 in Melbourne. Williams is a seven-time Australian Open singles champion.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion won her last major title in 2017 in Melbourne. She can match Margaret Court for the most Grand Slam singles titles in history with another major victory.
Williams is the No. 41 player in the WTA singles rankings. She placed up to 7th place in 2021, her best ranking since being 4th on July 3, 2017.
