Serena ok for Ronald Garros

Injury will not keep world number six from Paris

By Simon Dilger   Last updated: 16th May 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Serena ok for Ronald Garros

Williams: No problem

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Serena Williams has said she expects to recover in time to compete in the French Open after hurting her back in Italy this week.

The world number six pulled out of the WTA Rome International on Friday after injuring herself during training.

Williams, who won her two matches at the Foro Italico in straight sets, was to have met French sensation Alize Cornet in the quarter-finals.

But the 26-year-old, told a news conference that she did not believe it would hinder her preparation for Roland Garros, which begins in Paris on May 25.

Good form

"It just happened all of a sudden in practice," she said. "I just went for a shot and my back got a little stuck, that's basically how it happened.

"I don't expect this to cause any problems in my preparations for the French. I'm just going to keep training for Roland Garros and get ready for that.

"I'm in good form, so I'll be going in with a couple of good wins."

With her older sister Venus playing a quarter-final against fourth-seed Jelena Jankovic on the opposite side of the draw, Williams' withdrawal removed the possibility of an all-Williams final.

Cornet now meets Russian sixth seed Anna Chakvetadze, who defeated Bulgarian qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova in three sets earlier on Friday.

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