Victoria Mboko withdrew from her first-round singles match at the 2026 HSBC Championships on Wednesday, after the 19-year-old Canadian slipped and fell while trailing Karolina Pliskova 6-2, 3-4 on grass.
Mboko reportedly told her physiotherapist she had "no stability" after the fall, limping back to her bench and putting a towel to her face. Despite taking an immediate medical timeout, the tournament's No. 3 seed could not continue her grass-court singles debut at London's Queen's Club.
Mboko Injury Looms Over Doubles Run with Serena Williams
The setback now puts the world No. 9's doubles partnership with Serena Williams in doubt.
Williams, 44, returned to competitive tennis at Queen's Club after nearly four years away from the WTA Tour. Her last professional match came at the 2022 US Open.
On Tuesday, the pair opened with a straight-sets win over third-seeded Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez, 7-6(2), 6-2. They are next scheduled to face Canada's Leylah Fernandez and Germany's Laura Siegemund in Thursday's quarterfinals.
Whether Mboko can recover in time will determine if the partnership continues in the WTA 500 event.
