(Reuters) – World number one Serena Williams added her name to the list of slain seeds at the Wuhan Open yesterday after the American was forced to retire from her second round match against France’s Alize Cornet because of illness.
The top seed, playing her first match since winning her 18th grand slam singles title at the U.S. Open earlier this month, broke Cornet to lead 6-5 in the first set when she called for the doctor to come on court at the change over.
Williams sat solemnly, head down with a towel around her neck and a thermometer in her mouth during the examination before making the quick decision against continuing.
The 32-year-old also had her blood pressure checked and walked slowly off court with the help of the trainer, with reports saying she went to hospital for further tests.
She had shown flashes of her usual brilliance but looked shy of full fitness throughout her hour of activity on the centre court, with the lengthy 11th game, which included several deuces, proving particularly taxing as she leant on her racquet between points.
Her exit only added to the headache for organisers of the inaugural $2.4 million hard court event, where top names tumbled in early action after the city’s tennis trailblazer Li Na announced her retirement from the game last week.
