Venus Williams is hoping she is fully recovered from a muscle injury for Friday's third round clash with Andrea Petkovic at the Australian Open.
Venus pulled off a miraculous recovery to beat Sandra Zahlavova of the Czech Republic 6-7, 6-0, 6-4 after looking on the verge of pulling out after the first set.
The American screamed in pain after straining the muscle while going for a high backhand volley and most spectators feared the worst. "I didn't even run for the next ball, so you can take your guess," she said. "It was a bit of shock and just kind of involuntary. I think this is probably the most acute injury that I've ever had. But I just wanted to stay on the court and try to survive and see if I could feel better another day."
Her recovery was astounding. After returning to the locker room, she made the necessary adjustments, started to shorten the rallies and blew away a distracted Zahlavova in the second set.
"I think this being a major definitely has a lot to do with me staying on the court," Venus revealed. "I really haven't retired from a match in any tournament in quite a long time. I think that's a testament to how I feel when I step on the court. I'm there to stay. Definitely this being a major I definitely gave it my best. It wasn't easy out there at all. Had it not been a major, would have definitely been harder to continue."
Fortunately for her Petkovic is not in the best of form and only just sneaked past qualifier Anne Keothavong 2-6, 7-5, 6-0 in an error-strewn second round clash.
