US player Serena Williams (L) speaks with Canada's Victoria Mboko (R) while playing against US player Nicole Melichar-Martinez and New Zealand's Erin Routliffe during their round of 16, doubles match at the HSBC WTA tennis Championships at Queen's Club in west London on June 9, 2026. Photo by ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP
Serena Williams’ bid to win the Queen’s Club doubles title on her return to tennis came to a premature end on Thursday after the American legend’s partner Victoria Mboko was forced to withdraw from the tournament.
Williams sensationally returned to action on Tuesday for the first time in four years, partnering with Mboko for a straight-sets victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Erin Routliffe in the first round.
The pair were due to play Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund in the quarter-finals of the grass-court event in west London on Thursday.
But Mboko pulled out just hours before the last eight clash after failing to recover from a left knee injury suffered in the second set of her singles match against Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday.
