Serena Abruptly Quits Wimbledon & Here's Why

On Tuesday, tennis superstar and world No. 1 Serena Williams abruptly quit Wimbledon after abandoning a doubles match with sister Venus, during which she appeared disorientated. After a wobbly warm-up against opponents Kristina Barrois and Stefanie Voegle, a doctor was called to the court. Williams sat, head in hands, consulting with the doctor while she appeared to be crying, according to USA Today. Once she took to the court, she had trouble gripping the ball and making contact.

Now, for me, that's not out of the ordinary, but for the five-time Wimbledon champ it was a red flag. In her third game, each of Williams' serves were double-faults that didn't even register on the radar guns, sparking (rightful) concern from commentators. Finally, the sisters retired from the game with Barrois-Voegle leading them 0-3.

The referee's office cited a viral bug, and in a statement, Serena said:

I am heartbroken I'm not able to continue in the tournament. I thought I could rally this morning, because I really wanted to compete, but this bug just got the best of me. I want to thank my sister, Kristina, Stefanie and our teams for their support. We were all looking forward to a great match. From the bottom of my heart, I thank all of the fans for their cheers and understanding. I look forward to returning to Wimbledon next year.

Isha Price, Serena's half-sister, told USA Today that Serena had felt "sad" and "emotional" since her loss to France's Alize Cornet on Saturday. Serena lost in the third round, a tough loss for the perennial superstar. Still, Price said that Serena did not seem sick, and wasn't more down than she would have been after any other loss.

"She seemed emotional, sad, you know what I mean? But before the match she was fine," Price told USA Today.

Serena and Venus have claimed five Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon. Serena is currently ranked no. 1 in the world for women's singles.

In more Wimbledon news, Rafael Nadal was knocked out of the tournament by a teenager. Granted, a very talented teenager, but still! Australian Nick Kyrgios annihilated the two-time champion Nadal, which takes the 19-year old to his first grand-slam quarter final. No matter what happens in the rest of the tournament, this is Kyrgios' introduction to the men's top 100. Man. What did you do with your summers as a teenager?