Why is Serena Williams wearing plasters on her face at Wimbledon? Reasons explained as American eyes title

Serena Williams returns to action at Wimbledon this year, following on from her appearance in the women’s doubles at Eastbourne last week.

The 40-year-old is looking to firmly consign a frustrating injury-plagued 12 months behind her as she appears at the All England club as a wild card.

Since withdrawing from the first round at Wimbledon last year, the American was forced to miss last year’s US Open and this year’s Australian Open, before choosing to miss the French Open.

But one of the sport’s most iconic figures is back competing, and one of the most striking things about the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s appearance in Eastbourne were the plasters on her cheek.

Sinusitis is a condition that swells the empty spaces behind your cheeks connecting to the nose. Once the lining swells, mucus cannot drain from your nose and throat correctly.

There is a degree of scepticism surrounding her chances of success at Wimbledon after initially being left off the entry list for this year’s event.

“She must have not thought she was ready, but then she got the bug and thought, ‘you know what, I’m coming’. We saw her play a couple of doubles matches with Ons Jabeur, which gave us an insight into what sort of form she brings.

“I’m a little concerned for her, having not played for a year. How is she moving? She has had the opportunity to go out onto Centre Court and test – which is something new. The club broke the tradition, allowing players to go and break that court in so it’s not as greasy on the first day.

“They were worried about injuries, which is what happened to Serena last year. When we look at Serena, she’s been such an offensive and aggressive player, but it’s her defensive capabilities and her movement that has really been outstanding.

“If she can bring those into the singles, she could be dangerous, but I think it could be hard for her having been away from the game.

“I don’t think she has played a lot. When we talk about distractions, it’s really important to note that there has been the Academy Awards, there’s been movies… multi-million dollar businesses that she runs alongside her husband.

“She is also a mum, and they are all distractions. We know this in any sport, but especially in tennis, you have to be so focused and insular, you have to shut everything else out. I think that is going to be hard for her to hone the concentration and be ready to play at her best here.

“The question a lot of us have asked is, ‘is this Serena coming to say goodbye?'”

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