By Chris Oddo | Sunday March 10, 2019
Serena Williams was hit by a viral illness and had to retire from her match with Garbine Muguruza at Indian Wells.
Photo Source: Clive Brunskill/Getty
Serena Williams run at the BNP Paribas Open ended prematurely as the two-time champion retired due the illness after she dropped seven straight games.
Muguruza comes away with the 6-3 1-0 RET victory and will advance to the round of 16.
The official reason for retirement is viral illness according to WTA Tennis.com.
Williams stormed out to a 3-0 lead but gradually lost all her energy and by the end of the set she was sapped and sought medical attention. She didn’t have any specific body part tested, nor did she take any medications.
During play her first serve was clocked as low as 85 MPH and she looked lethargic, lacking the energy to run for balls.
After dropping the first game of the second set Williams stopped at her chair and sagged at the change of ends. Medical staff rushed out and the match was called shortly thereafter.
Muguruza will move on to face Kiki Bertens in the round of 16. Bertens edged Johanna Konta 7-6(10) 6-4 on Stadium 2.
Wang, Vondrousova Advance
China’s Wang Qiang reached the round of 16 for the second consecutive year as she edged Belgium’s Elise Mertens in a marathon 7-6(4) 6-7(4) 6-3. The Chinese will face Bianca Andreescu in her next match. The 27-year-old is playing at a career-high ranking of 18 here in the desert.
Also moving through was Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, the 19-year-old battled her way past Jelena Ostapenko, 4-6 6-3 6-4 to reach the round of 16 for the second straight year. She broke serve eight times on 12 opportunities in her first career meeting with the Latvian.