World No. 1 Serena Williams pulls out of Rogers Cup with inflamed shoulder

MONTREAL – World No. 1 Serena Williams has pulled out of the Rogers Cup because of shoulder inflammation.

The three-time Rogers Cup champion was seeded first in the hard-court tournament and was set to have a bye in the first round.

“Due to inflammation in my shoulder, I unfortunately must withdraw from the Rogers Cup,” Williams said in a statement. “I was looking forward to competing in Montreal and I look forward to returning soon.”

Williams is coming off her seventh career Wimbledon title earlier this month. The win tied Steffi Graf’s record of 22 career Grand Slam titles.

“Of course, we are disappointed that Serena will not play in the tournament this year. The fans really enjoyed the time she spent in the city in 2014,” tournament director Eugene Lapierre said. “Because this is an Olympic year, the players have very full schedules. Sometimes your body needs rest. We hope that Serena will recover quickly and wish her much success for the rest of the season.”