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Williams targets summer return after blood clots


 

Originally published on: 10/03/11 09:58

Serena Williams hopes to return to tennis this summer, despite still having blood clots on her lungs.

The 13-time Grand Slam champion, who suffered from a pulmonary embolism, admitted on NBC’s Today show on Wednesday that she hasn’t left her Los Angeles house much since checking in to the hospital nearly three weeks ago.

“I had a lot of swelling in my leg, which really is a telltale sign of an embolism, and I could not breath,” Williams said.

The 29-year-old said doctors couldn’t find anything in her leg, and so ordered a CT scan of her lungs.

“That’s when they found several blood clots,” said Williams. “They told me they had to check me in immediately or else… it wasn’t going to be a good result.”

She returned to the hospital on February 28 for surgery to remove a large haematoma on her stomach – which grew from the size of a “golf ball” to the size of a “grapefruit.”

World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki visited Williams at her Los Angeles home en route to the Indian Wells tournament.

“As always, she was a lot of fun to be with,” said the Dane. “She looked good, but of course she has a lot of things that need to be checked up on. But she is in good spirits.”

Williams hasn’t played since winning the Wimbledon title last July, but while she realises the seriousness of her ordeal, the American is keen to return to court as soon as possible.

“I still have several clots in my lung. They’re just there, and they have to eventually dissolve,” she said. I’m just taking it one day at a time. Just on the road to recovery.

“I said I wanted to return this summer, and I was hoping to return way sooner than that. Being so close to… the scariest moment in my life, I really just want to come back and be able to do well.”

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Tim Farthing, Tennishead Editorial Director & Owner, has been a huge tennis fan his whole life. He's a tennis journalist and entrepreneur as well as playing tennis to a national standard. He also helps manage his local club and volunteers for his local tennis organisation. He's a specialist in content about the administration of professional tennis and tennis coaching for all levels.