Williams looks forward to ‘getting a life’

Venus Williams might not be quite ready to call time on her Wimbledon career, but when the time comes she momentarily suggested she might not miss the place too much.

“I’ll be fine because I played so many times. It will be nice to get a life, I guess,” said Williams, 37, who is in the hunt for a sixth singles title at the All England Club.

“There’s always other chapters in your life. I definitely lived this chapter. I’m still living it.

“I love this game. So I think I’ll have an opportunity not to miss it, I imagine.”

Thinking more about the prospect, Williams added: “I don’t know how I’ll feel. I think I’ll always in my heart be a tennis player. There will be something missing always without the competition. But I’m not there yet.”

So could she join the ranks of the ‘super’ coaches? Asked if coaching could be an option, she said: “No.”

RALLYING AROUND The tennis community continued to rally around Bethanie MattekSands following her fall the previous day that resulted in a dreadful knee injury.

The American doubles Grand Slam champion was in singles action when she fell, and she was undergoing tests at a nearby private hospital to determine the nature of her setback as play continued at the All England Club.

Jack Sock, who teamed up with Mattek-Sands to win an Olympic gold medal in mixed doubles last year, paid his own tribute to his ailing compatriot by penning her name on his tennis shoes, BETHANIE on the left and MATTEK-SANDS on the right.

QUOTE OF THE DAY “I’ve been feeling so great about my game, within myself. It just felt like I’d fallen at the same hurdle again. It hurt a lot today.” – Heather Watson after losing to Victoria Azarenka.

TWEET OF THE DAY Anyone else wondering whether watching Andy Murray can shorten your life? #tennis – BBC political journalist Nick Robinson.

MATCH OF THE DAY Novak Djokovic has yet to be seriously tested after two rounds, following Martin Klizan’s retirement and Adam Pavlasek’s stage fright, but Ernests Gulbis might give him plenty to think about on Centre Court.

The mid-afternoon assignment comes against a former top-10 player who until this Wimbledon had not won a tour match for 13 months.

A second-round victory for Gulbis over Juan Martin del Potro suggests the old magic is back.