Serena Williams’ absence from tennis could stretch to almost a year after two new health scares — a blood clot in her lungs followed by a hematoma — have added to her injury woes.
Her agents confirmed on Wednesday that Williams was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism last week and later needed treatment for a hematoma. The 13-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t played an official match since winning Wimbledon last July because of a foot injury she sustained not on the court but at a restaurant.
Her latest health problems have been “extremely hard, scary and disappointing,” Williams said in a statement. “I am doing better.”
“I’m at home now and working with my doctors to keep everything under control. I know I will be OK, but am praying and hoping this will all be behind me soon. While I can’t make any promises now on my return, I hope to be back by early summer. That said, my main goal is to make sure I get there safely,” she said.
People magazine first reported on Williams’ condition, quoting spokeswoman Nicole Chabot as saying Williams underwent “emergency treatment” on Monday for a hematoma suffered as a result of treatment for “a more critical situation,” the pulmonary embolism.
The 29-year-old Williams was treated at a Los Angeles hospital then returned to her home.
“Thankfully everything was caught in time,” her agents said in a statement. “With continued doctor visits to monitor her situation, she is recuperating at home under strict medical supervision.”
Williams has been out of competition since she cut her right foot on broken glass at a restaurant shortly after winning her fourth Wimbledon title on July 3. Her comeback has been repeatedly delayed by complications with the injury.
Williams had surgery after initially hurting her foot and pulled out of the US Open. She resumed practicing in September, but kept pushing back her return and needed an additional operation in October.
Williams missed the Australian Open in January, where she was the two-time defending champion.
Chabot told the magazine the embolism was discovered after Williams returned to Los Angeles from New York, where she had gone “for doctor appointments for the ongoing issues with her foot.”
Mark Adelman, chief of vascular surgery at NYU Langone Medical Center, said a patient with a pulmonary embolism would need to take an anticoagulant for six to 12 months, but could play sports on the medication.
“A blood clot can occur in any vein or extremity, most commonly in the leg, and can travel to the lung,” Adelman wrote in an e-mail. “Prior surgery, air travel, prolonged sitting, birth control pills, obesity and pregnancy can predispose a patient to a blood clot in the leg that can travel to the lung.”
Adelman said if a clot-dissolving agent is used to treat an embolism, it can result in bleeding around the catheter used to deliver the drug. Williams’ agents said the hematoma was removed.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS