(Victoria Mboko reacts after slipping on the grass. Photo by CBC)
Serena Williams’ bid to win the Queen’s Club doubles title on her return to tennis came to a premature end on Thursday after her partner Victoria Mboko was forced to withdraw from the tournament.
Williams made a sensational return to action on Tuesday for the first time in four years, partnering with Mboko for a straight-sets victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe in the first round.
The pair were due to face Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund in the quarter-finals of the grass-court event in west London.
However, Mboko pulled out just hours before the last-eight clash after failing to recover from a left knee injury sustained in the second set of her singles match against Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday.
The world number nine, who was injured after slipping on the court, was unable to finish that match and was visibly distressed, telling physios, “there is no stability right now.”
The 19-year-old Canadian opted against risking further aggravation of the injury by continuing in the doubles alongside Williams.
Tournament organisers confirmed Mboko’s withdrawal, leaving Williams to wait for her next competitive outing at the Berlin Open doubles the following week, where she is reportedly set to partner Karolina Muchova.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion is still weighing whether to extend her comeback to Wimbledon.
Williams has yet to confirm whether she will play any singles events during her return, though she told reporters at Queen’s earlier in the week that she had not ruled out featuring in the Wimbledon doubles.
She would require a wildcard from Wimbledon officials to compete at the All England Club, as her ranking is not sufficient for automatic entry.
Wimbledon chief executive Sally Bolton, when asked whether Williams would receive a wildcard if she requested one, said the wild card committee would formally make their decisions the following week, adding that Williams had generated tremendous excitement with her return to the grass.
“She has certainly created a fantastic buzz and that’s exciting for the sport,” Bolton said.
Williams’ comeback, her first competitive appearance in 1,375 days, captured global attention.
She said the return was inspired by a desire to play in front of her young daughters, Olympia and Adira, who were courtside to witness her winning return on Tuesday.
Despite the victory, Williams was characteristically self-critical about her performance.
“Oh my god! What do you think? A C minus?” she said when asked to rate herself. “All the elements, considering coming back on grass is probably not the easiest surface.
On the grass, four years… Overall I think it was decent.”
