Serena Williams Ate Dog Food Before Rome Win

Serena Williams made herself ill after eating dog food hours before reaching the last eight of the Italian Open.

The world number one tried “a spoonful” of food meant for her dog, Chip, before beating fellow American Christina McHale in straight sets in Rome.

“I thought ‘what the heck, I’m gonna try a piece, it looks good’,” she said.

“Fast forward two hours, I just ran to the toilet like I thought I was going to pass out. It did taste weird. It tasted kind of like house cleaner.”

In a video posted on Snapchat, Williams explained she sampled a dish of chicken and rice offered on a ‘doggy menu’ at her hotel.

“I force-swallowed it, said the 34-year-old American. “I don’t know what they put in these dog foods, but Chip liked it.

“I don’t think it’s consumable for humans. They should have wrote that! So now I feel really sick. It was just a spoonful, but I don’t feel so good.”

Williams defeated McHale 7-6, (9-7), 6-1 and set up a meeting with Svetlana Kuznetsova, who beat fellow Russian Daria Gavrilova, in the last eight.

Elsewhere, British number one Johanna Konta was beaten in three sets by Misaki Doi in the third round.

Konta, 24, took the opening set but went down 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 to her 25-year-old Japanese opponent.

Doi, ranked 45 in the world, belied her position 22 places below the Australian Open semi-finalist to take victory.

Doi faces Swiss Timea Bacsinszky in the last eight.

Despite her defeat, Konta will arrive at the French Open as a seeded player. A year on from being ranked 143rd in the world, she is up to 23.

“I thought she played a very, very good level today and I didn’t do quite enough to get her out of her comfort zone,” Konta told BBC Sport.

BBC

Serena Williams Ate Dog Food Before Rome Win

Serena Williams Out Of Madrid Open With Flu

Serena Williams has withdrawn from the Madrid Open because of flu organizers have said.

Agnieszka Radwanska takes over as top seed for the tournament, which starts on Saturday, while Williams is now due to start her clay-court season in Rome.

The 34-year-old world number one has only played four tournaments since August, failing to win any of them.

She lost in the US Open semi-finals in September, before defeats this year in the Australian Open and Indian Wells finals and a round-four loss in Miami.

Serena Williams Out Of Madrid Open With Flu

Serena Willaims Reaaches 88th Career Final

World number one Serena Williams will face Victoria Azarenka in Sunday’s BNP Paribas Open final at Indian Wells.

The American, 34, reached her 88th career final by beating Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 7-6 (7-1).

It took 2012 champion Azarenka just over two hours to see off Karolina Pliskova, with the 26-year-old Belarusian winning 7-6 1-6, 6-2.

“This year has been great. It feels so great to be supported,” said Williams, twice a winner of the tournament.

“It’s been a great comeback here in Indian Wells. I’m excited about that.”

Williams won seven games in a row to take the first set and go 3-0 up in the second, before seven successive points clinched victory in the tie-break.

She has won 23 of her 24 matches at Indian Wells, taking a self-imposed 14-year exile from the event amidst allegations of racial abuse from fans after sister Venus withdrew minutes before their semi-final in 2001.

“I had a lot of support, I heard a lot of ‘go Serenas’ and that was kind of cool,” added Williams, who won the tournament in 1999 and 2001.

Serena Willaims Reaaches 88th Career Final

Indian Wells: Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams advance

Rafael Nadal reached the BNP Paribas Open quarter-finals in Indian Wells after winning the last five games to beat Alexander Zverev 6-7 6-0 7-5.

Nadal faced a match point but the 18-year-old German missed an easy volley – admitting: “On match point I sucked.”

Three-time champion Nadal plays Japan’s Kei Nishikori next and could face Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals.

Serena Williams beat defending champion Simona Halep 6-4 6-3 to reach the last four in the women’s draw.

The world number one now plays Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska, who beat Petra Kvitova 6-2 7-6 and will reclaim the world number two ranking when the new list is released on Monday.

“She knows how to play in big stadiums and big matches, big games,” Williams said of Halep.

Zverev has been widely tipped as the teenager most likely to make the breakthrough among the game’s elite and he went agonisingly close to a landmark win over Nadal.

The 6ft 6in German, the younger brother of tour player Mischa Zverev, led 5-3 and 40-30 in the final set, only to make three straight unforced errors.

Nadal, 29, battled back impressively, but had glowing praise for the teenager, who is set to rise to a career-high ranking of 52 next week.

“He is amazingly talented,” said Nadal. “He is probably going to be the number one in the world.

“With his second serve at 120mph, with a lot of spin and at 124, 123, 120mph, it was impossible. If he puts the first serve in at over 130 mph then you are in big trouble.

“So I think that I’m here, and still alive.”

Djokovic finds his form

The world number one beat Spain’s Feliciano Lopez 6-3 6-3 to set up a quarter-final with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France.

Djokovic had not been at his best in the previous rounds but saw off Lopez with little trouble.

“I was very solid. I didn’t allow him to come to the net too many times,” said the Serb. “It was a good performance.”

David Goffin beat French Open champion and third seed Stan Wawrinka 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7-5), while Milos Raonic knocked out sixth seed Tomas Berdych 6-4 7-6 (9-7).

Indian Wells: Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams advance