Venus Williams A Nonfactor At Wimbledon
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By DERON SNYDER
If Venus Williams is destined to lose her battle against age, injuries and Sjogren’s syndrome, she’s determined to go down swinging. She was unable to muster much resistance Monday in an opening-round match at Wimbledon, but Williams refused to concede that her reign as a premier player has ended.
“I feel like I’m a great player,” Williams said after losing in Wimbledon’s first round for the first time since her debut appearance in 1997. “I am a great player. Unfortunately I have to deal with circumstances that people don’t have to deal with normally in a sport, but I can’t be discouraged by that. I’m up for challenges.”
Williams, 32, a five-time Wimbledon champion, hasn’t been herself for a while. She revealed in August that she suffers from an autoimmune condition that can cause fatigue and joint pain. Following a seven-month layoff, she returned to the tour in March, hoping to earn a bid on the U.S. Olympic team for the London Games.
The comeback has included measured success, such as reaching the quarterfinals in three tournaments and improving her world ranking from No. 134 to No. 58. But in her second-round defeat last month at the French Open, as well as Monday’s 6-1, 6-3 loss to Russia’s Elena Vesnina, Williams seemed to lack energy. She lost the first five games in a match that lasted just one hour and 15 minutes.
