July 07, (THEWILL) – American tennis player, Madison Keys, was forced to retire from her fourth-round Wimbledon match against Italy’s Jasmine Paolini on Sunday, due to a left leg injury. The 12th-seeded Keys had fought back from losing the first set to lead 5-2 in the final set before the injury occurred.
Keys received medical treatment and attempted to continue playing with her leg heavily strapped. However, she was unable to move properly and made the difficult decision to retire with the score level at 5-5 in the deciding set.
The emotional scene unfolded on Court One as a tearful Keys was comforted by her opponent after conceding the match. Paolini expressed mixed feelings about advancing in this manner, saying she felt “a bit happy but also sad” for Keys.
This result means Paolini will face either reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff or fellow American, Emma Navarro, in the quarterfinals. It marks Paolini’s first time reaching this stage at Wimbledon after previously never advancing past the first round.
For Keys, it was a heartbreaking end to her Wimbledon campaign. The 2017 US Open finalist had been aiming to reach her third Wimbledon quarterfinal before the injury derailed her chances dramatically.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
