Serena Williams’ Queen’s run over as injured Victoria Mboko withdraws

Serena Williams’ doubles campaign at Queen’s has been curtailed as her playing partner Victoria Mboko has withdrawn with a left knee injury.

The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, 44, made her return to tennis on Tuesday after almost four years away from the sport.

The pair had been scheduled to play their quarter-final on Thursday but Mboko, 19, suffered a nasty fall in her singles match on Wednesday, which forced her to retire from the match.

Trailing 6-2 3-4 against Karolina Pliskova, the Canadian teenager cried out in pain as she went down clutching her knee and she limped off the court in tears.

It means her compatriot Leylah Fernandez and Germany’s Laura Siegemund, who they were scheduled to face in the doubles on Thursday evening, advance to the semi-finals.

Williams returned with a winning performance on Tuesday as she and Mboko won 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 to upset third seeds Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez.

Playing 1,375 days after her last competitive match, Williams – one of the greatest players of all time – didn’t look a touch out of place as she rediscovered her powerful serve and groundstrokes.

Despite her Queen’s campaign coming to an end, Williams’ comeback is set to continue as she has signed up to play doubles in Berlin next week.

The Times has reported, external that she will team up with Czech Karolina Muchova, the world number 10, in the German capital.

Williams has also said she is considering playing doubles at Wimbledon, which starts on 29 June, and she has yet to rule out a return to singles in the future.