Wimbledon 2021: Serena Williams was forced to withdraw in the first round due to an ankle injury

Serena Williams will not win her eighth Wimbledon title this year. In the first round against Ariaksandra Sasnović on Tuesday, Williams injured her ankle, forcing her to withdraw from the game.

In the sixth game of the first set, William slipped on the grass and quickly left the center court for treatment. About 10 minutes later, Williams came back, but when she tried to serve, her eyes were visibly painful and tears were streaming down her face. When she could not complete the serve, Williams withdrew from the game.

She waved to the crowd as she left the court.

Williams is not the only player injured at Wimbledon on Tuesday.

French player Adrian Mannarino led 2-1 when Roger Federer injured his knee, also slipping on the grass. He withdrew from the game shortly thereafter.

This marked the second time Williams was forced to withdraw from a Grand Slam tournament due to injury. Williams strained her calf muscle in just two games during the 1998 Wimbledon Tennis Championship against Virginia Ruano Pascual.

Williams currently has 23 Grand Slam titles and only needs to win one more to tie Margaret Court’s record. Her last Grand Slam title was at Wimbledon in 2016.