Venus Williams reacts to a missed shot, on her way to defeating Japan's Akiko Morigami in their women's singles match at Wimbledon yesterday. Williams won 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. - AP WIMBLEDON, England (AP):
Serena Williams collapsed with a strained calf, screamed in pain and buried her face in the grass behind the baseline, her bid for a third Wimbledon title in jeopardy.
Nearly three hours later, following a timely rain delay, she hobbled gallantly into the quarter-finals by beating Daniela Hantuchova 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-2.
"I've never dealt with such pain," Williams said. "I can't believe I won, really."
When the rain came yesterday, Williams was a set up but trailing 4-2 in the second-set tiebreaker. She limped off the court without bothering to fetch her tennis bag.
"I couldn't move before the rain," she said. "I was definitely saved by the rain."
Following a delay of nearly two hours, Williams returned to the court with both legs taped, wearing sweat pants to keep warm in the cool conditions. She lost the first five points but then began to move better and hit more aggressively, while Hantuchova was erratic, perhaps unnerved by the unusual circumstances.
She'll next play top-ranked Justine Henin.
Yet to win
Henin, seeking the only Grand Slam title she has yet to win, beat No. 15-seeded Patty Schnyder 6-2, 6-2.
Williams' sister, Venus, made it to the fourth round despite a performance so filled with errors, she drew criticism from her father.
The three-time champion rallied past Akiko Morigami 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 in a match suspended Saturday. And she did it even though she faced 23 break points, double-faulted 14 times and trailed 5-3 in the third set.
Serena Williams' injury, described by the WTA Tour as a spasm-induced left calf strain, struck after Hantuchova hit a forehand winner for a 5-5, 30-15 lead in the set. Williams grabbed her calf, tapped it three times with her racket head and fell to the grass.
She remained down for seven minutes. While a trainer massaged the calf, Williams grimaced, then screamed in pain.
She kept playing for another 11 minutes, wiping away tears before one point while hitting shots weakly and walking stiffly in pursuit of the ball. But she managed to hold for 6-all, then won the last two points before the delay.
Some Centre Court fans cheered the interruption, pleased to see Williams rewarded for her valiant attempt to keep playing. She said she took advantage of the break to receive treatment with ice and massages, and drank a lot of liquids.
Struggled from the start
Venus will next go against 2004 champion Maria Sharapova, one of only two players to win Saturday in the rain-plagued tournament. Venus trailed 4-1 in the second set when her match was halted, and when it resumed two days later, she struggled from the start, losing the first seven points.
In the completion of third-round matches suspended Saturday, No. 5-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-3; No. 6 Ana Ivanovic defeated Aravane Rezai 6-3, 6-2; No. 11 Nadia Petrova swept Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-3, 7-6 (3); and No. 14 Nicole Vaidisova beat Victoria Azarenka 6-4, 6-2.
No. 12 Elena Dementieva lost to 16-year-old Tamira Paszek of Austria 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.
In men's third-round play, 2006 runner-up Rafael Nadal was one point from victory when he hit a cross-court forehand barely wide. His match with Robin Soderling was immediately halted by rain with the score 7-all in the third-set tiebreaker.
Play resumed but then was stopped for the night with Nadal leading 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (7), 4-6, 2-0.
No. 7 Tomas Berdych beat Lee Hyung-taik 6-4, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3). No. 10 Marcos Baghdatis defeated No. 23 David Nalbandian 6-2, 7-5, 6-0.
