Serena Williams To Miss World Team Tennis Season With Cut On Foot

Defending Wimbledon champion, Serena Williams, will miss all four of her World Team Tennis matches this season for the Washington Kastles with a cut on her foot, the league announced Wednesday.

Williams ... cut her foot earlier this week and was not able to play her first WTT match against the New York Buzz in Glens Falls, N.Y., on Friday, July 9. Williams was also scheduled to play WTT matches for the Kastles in Philadelphia(July 13), Washington, D.C. (July 14) and New York (July 15). [...]

“I’m very disappointed that I won’t be able to play in the WTT matches this season,” said Williams. “It is always such a fun experience and I love interacting with the fans in the cities that I don’t often have the opportunity to play in during the rest of the year.”

The Kastles, in their third year of existence, went through all of the trouble during the much anticipated WTT off-season to acquire Venus Williams from the Philadelphia Freedoms in order to keep her sister happy. The pairing wasn’t meant to be, however. Serena is being a good sport about it, as the cut on her foot did not stop her from travelling with the team to Glen Falls to sign some autographs.

Nonetheless, the defending champs don’t seem worried about their star attraction’s injury. From the Kastles’ press release:

“We are very sorry that our Kastles teammate Serena William has an injury and won’t be able to play this season. She has been an important part of our team, both on and off the court, and we wish her well for a speedy recovery,” said owner Mark Ein. “Our team is filled with talent and experience as exhibited by our strong start and five and one record, and each member of the squad remains committed to keeping the WTT crown in Washington, D.C. The crowds at Kastles Stadium have been full, loud and passionate this season and we know we can rely on that kind of home court advantage for our last five home matches.”

The Kastles will be giving fans a choice of either a free dinner and beverage, merchandise discounts, or $20 off a future ticket in response to Serena’s absence.