The AP notes that the doubles match was Serena Williams’ second match of the day after winning her first-rounder in singles earlier.
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Afterward, Williams did not speak to reporters. Fernandez also said Venus was dealing with cramping, dehydration and an upset stomach after Saturday’s loss.
“I was a little nervous about that”, Williams said of her reaction to hearing of the gusty conditions, which she called “very intense”.
Alexis was certainly there for her at Wimbledon, uploading pictures of her basking in glory when she won the championship title. It was reported that Venus was not feeling well.
Along with her three gold medals in doubles, the younger Williams won gold in singles at London.
She added: “So many Olympic doubles golds and Grand Slam titles, it´s been awesome”. She won her first-round match Saturday, dropping Australian Daria Gavrilova in straight sets. They are even unseeded in Rio while the Williams sisters are seeded No. 1 in Rio. Venus is 36 years old. And it helped her attain her best ranking since revealing in 2011 that she had been diagnosed with Sjongren’s syndrome, which can cause joint pain and fatigue.
The athlete, who is in Brazil to compete in the singles and doubles tournament, explained from the bus: “So I don’t mean to be Debbie Downer or a Serena Downer, but I’m kind of ready to go”. “Credit to Flipkens, who hung around and defended so well and made her play extra shots”. The duo entered Rio with an unbeaten record in the Olympics, including gold medals in 2000, 2008 and 2012.
Before today, the sisters had only ever dropped three sets in their Olympic doubles career.
Not all is lost for the Williams family, as Serena Williams still has the singles tournament to look forward to. Strycova and Safarov were happy that they won against the sisters. They clapped when she double-faulted.
In the doubles, played under the lights, when occasional chants of “USA!” would rise from some spectators, other members of the crowd would respond with boos. “At the end of the day, I think that’s what matters most”.
It was a good day all round for Japan, as Nishikori’s teammates Taro Daniel and Yuichi Sugita were surprise winners later on against Americans Jack Sock, the No. 14 seed, and Brian Baker respectively.
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Players have noticed that the green courts in Rio play slower and offer higher bounces than hard courts used on the North American circuit leading to the U.S. Open later this month.
