FRENCH OPEN SERENA CAN RETURN TO WIN WIMBLEDON

Williams targeting SW19 after injury forces her out of French Open

SERENA WILLIAMS can regain her Wimbledon crown despite pulling out of the French Open in agony yesterday, claims her coach.

The new mum was scheduled to face old foe Maria Sharapova (below) in the fourth round at Roland Garros.

But instead the 36-year-old announced at a hastilyconvened press conference that injury had forced her to withdraw during a Grand Slam singles tournament for the first time in her career.

“I’ve been having some issues with my pec muscle, and it’s unfortunately been getting worse to the point where right now I can’t actually serve,” said the 23time Grand Slam winner.

“It’s kind of hard to play when I can’t physically serve. I’m beyond disappointed. I gave up so much time with my daughter and time with my family. I put everything on the court and I have made every sacrifice that I could.

“But I made a promise to myself and to my coach and to my team that if I’m not at least 60 per cent or 50 per cent, then I probably shouldn’t play. I’ve never had this before. This is so painful.”

The world No.451, who gave birth to Alexis Olympia in September, has only played three tournaments and seven matches since winning the 2017 Australian Open.

The All England Club now has a dilemma over whether to seed the seven-time champion when it meets on June 26 – if the American wins her race against time to get fit.

But her coach Patrick Mouratoglou said: “The next plan is to make an MRI to know how bad it is and then do everything so she has the best chance to play Wimbledon and hopefully win it because that’s why she came back.

“We’ll know tomorrow, whether we need two or three weeks – I hope not more – for her to be able to serve again.

“I feel it’s bad, I feel there’s no way she could have played, but I also feel that one extra match would have made it really worse and put in danger Wimbledon.

“I think she stopped at exactly the right moment – that’s my feeling.”

Sharapova now faces Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza in the quarter-finals, while No.1 seed Simona Halep takes on Angelique Kerber.

No.2 seed Caroline Wozniacki is out after losing in straight sets to No.14 seed Daria Kasatkina.