The Friday release of the French Open 2011 draw is less than 24 hours away. Don’t place your bets too early just yet -- many luminaries from Roland Garros tourneys past will be sidelined with injuries for this year’s contests.
French Open 2011: Notable Names Missing From Draw Include Williams Sisters
Defending doubles champs Serena and Venus Williams (who also play a bit of singles tennis, I’m told) will both miss this year’s clay-court Grand Slam event thanks to nagging injuries. Venus has battled knee and hip problems over the past year, and was forced to withdraw from the 2011 Australian Open. This time around she’s citing an unspecified abdominal injury. Serena missed the Aussie entirely owing to lingering problems from foot surgery, and hasn’t yet reconditioned from the months she had to spend in a walking boot.
On the men’s side, the biggest injury scare of the tourney so far came from World No. 4 Andy Murray, who withdrew from a warmup match Thursday morning but isn’t expected to pull out of the draw. No. 11 Andy Roddick, plagued lately with shoulder problems, is still in doubt for Roland Garros action as he considers preserving his strength for Wimbledon.
See our 2011 French Open schedule page for complete TV times and channels.
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