A day after her sister Serena made a heart-breaking Wimbledon exit due to a first round injury, Venus Williams was knocked out of the singles competition.
Venus, aged 41 and playing in her 90th grand slam tournament, pushed Tunisian 21st seed Ons Jabeur hard in the opening set but eventually succumbed to a 7-5 6-0 defeat.
It is the first time at least one of the American sisters has failed to reach the third round at Wimbledon since Serena made her debut at the tournament in 1998.
Asked whether she wants to return in 2022, she said: "Of course. Who wouldn't want to be at Wimbledon? Lots of people want to be here.
"Yeah, when it's my last, I'll let you know. I'll give you a little whisper in your ear."
Seven-time Wimbledon champion Serena was forced to quit against Aliaksandra Sasnovich after slipping and injuring her leg, ending another attempt to equal Australian Margaret Court's 24 grand slam titles.
Venus Williams was playing in the tournament for the 23rd time. She has won the title five times, most recently in 2008.
She is out of the singles but her Wimbledon isn't over yet - she's also playing mixed doubles with Nick Kyrgios.
It was a dark day also for fourth seed Sofia Kenin, whose horrible 2021 continued as she crashed out of the second round.
The American, who won the Australian Open in 2020, was beaten 6-2 6-4 by compatriot Madison Brengle and later ruled herself out of the Tokyo Olympics.
"I couldn't take anyone with me, and I definitely wanted to have someone. I love the Olympics. It was a tough one (decision)," Kenin said.
Kenin only made it to the second round at this year's Australian Open and got to the fourth round in the French Open.
Canadian fifth seed Bianca Andreescu didn't even make it to the second round after a 6-2 6-1 walloping by French nemesis Alize Cornet.
But she burst out laughing when a spectacular mis-hit lob from Cornet clipped the corner of the baseline to condemn the her to yet another first-round exit at Wimbledon.
"At one point she just ... switched gears and she was on another level," said Andreescu.
"She played really well. She was taking control from the start."
Cornet, who next plays Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic, will hope her win gives her the springboard to get beyond the fourth round, a feat she has managed only once in 13 previous appearances.
Also through is second seed Aryna Sabalenka who showed exceptional grit to rally from a set down to beat British wildcard Katie Boulter and reach the third round of Wimbledon for the first time.
Sabalenka's best result at the grasscourt grand slam was a second-round showing on debut in 2017 as a qualifier but she bettered that with a 4-6 6-3 6-3 victory in a match lasting over two hours.
World No.5 Elina Svitolina also fought her way into the second round with a 6-3 2-6 6-3 victory over unseeded Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck.
with Reuters and AP
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