Serena Williams Forced to Withdraw from the 2020 French Open Due to an Achilles Tendon Injury

Serena Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, has been forced to withdraw from the 2020 French Open after suffering an Achilles tendon injury. The tennis superstar has been struggling to walk.

Even the most dominant and most assertive tennis player has a weak spot. Serena Williams, 39, spoke to the press and announced that she is stepping back from the tournament due to her foot injury.

Williams said that the Achilles is a kind of injury that should not be taken lightly. Because of a lingering and sharp pain around her ankle, the tennis star has struggled to walk recently.

Williams pulled out ahead of her second round of the French Open, also known as "Roland-Garros 2020." She was also scheduled to face Bulgarian tennis player Tsvetana Pironkova.

The three-time Roland-Garros champion said that though her body is willing to play in the tournament, she could not perform well as her pain is "acute."

"My body is actually doing really, really well. I just ran into - for the lack of a better word- bad timing, bad luck really in New York."

Before her announcement, Williams reportedly suffered the injury during her US Open semi-finals defeat to Victoria Azarenka earlier this month. She felt the pain on the third set of their match.

Always playing her heart out and a hundred percent in the game, Williams did not want to worsen her injury. She needs two-week rest and about four to six weeks of rehabilitation.

The tennis star said she has experienced life-threatening circumstances, from the emergency caesarian section to breastfeeding challenges.

This year seems to be a time for Williams to rest her tennis racquet and attend to her health. Aside from the French Open, Williams had also withdrawn her slot from the Italian Open.

Since the 2017 Australian Open, Williams, who was eight weeks pregnant, has not won major tournaments. She lost four Grand Slam finals in Wimbledon and the US Open in 2018 and 2019.

Aware of her losses in straight sets, Williams earlier expressed an attempt to reclaim her throne on the Roland-Garros tournament, but it did not go as planned.

After she won three French Open championships in the past, Williams reportedly faced off-court issues since her daughter, Alexis Olympia, was born. She revealed her dilemma in the HBO documentary “Being Serena."

The tennis star said she has experienced life-threatening circumstances, from the emergency caesarian section to breastfeeding challenges.

Williams also disclosed that she dealt with multiple emotions as a first-time mother resuming to work. In August 2018, she shared about her post-partum depression which many mothers experience after childbirth.

With Williams taking time off from tennis tournaments, Olympia seems keen to replace her mother in the spotlight. Willams' recent Instagram picture is proof that the three-year-old girl is a future tennis pro.

The tennis champion shared three adorable pictures of her daughter and herself on Instagram. The mother-daughter duo donned matching purple athletic wear while on the tennis court.