Wimbledon officials defended the courts’ playing conditions after tennis megastar Serena Williams was forced to quit the Grand Slam after suffering an injury too significant to continue.
The 23-time Grand Slam winner, who will turn 40 this year, said leaving the world’s most prestigious tennis tournament was “heartbreaking”
“I was heartbroken to have to withdraw today after injuring my right leg,” Williams told her 13.3 million Instagram followers. “My love and gratitude are with the fans and the team who make being on centre court so meaningful.”
There were multiple slips at Wimbledon by a myriad of players on Tuesday, June 29, with a male player, Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, being forced to quit his match against Roger Federer after suffering an injury similar to Williams’.
According to Buzzfeed, several prominent players spoke about Williams and the playing surface.
“Brutal for @serenawilliams but centre court is extremely slippy out there,” Murray tweeted. “Not easy to move out there.”
Federer, considered the greatest player ever, shared many players’ sentiments that it was “a tad more slippery under the roof.”
All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, which runs Wimbledon, said in a statement to BuzzFeed News that they are “happy with the conditions” despite the barrage of player complaints.
“The preparation of the grass courts has been to exactly the same meticulous standard as in previous years,” AELTC said. “Each grass court is checked by the Grand Slam Supervisors, Referee’s Office and Grounds team ahead of play commencing, and on both days of the Fortnight they have been happy with the conditions and cleared the courts for play.”
