Saturday 21 March 2015 09:48, UK
Serena Williams has withdrawn from her scheduled semi-final match at Indian Wells with a knee injury.
Williams was due to play third-seeded Simona Halep but took to the court after the other semi-final, where Jelena Jankovic defeated Sabine Lisicki 3-6 6-3 6-1, to address the crowd.
"A couple days ago at practice I really injured my knee," Williams said. "Today I was struggling just to even walk."
The court announcer told the crowd, as Serena exited the court, that the 33-year-old was withdrawing from the tournament.
Her premature exit means Halep will advance to play Jankovic in the final on Sunday.
Williams was back at Indian Wells for the first time since 2001, having ended her boycott that began after she won the title in 2001 as a 19-year-old and was heavily booed.
Then, she was supposed to play Venus in the semis, and Venus withdrew 20 minutes beforehand with a knee injury, angering the crowd.
Serena went on to win the title, but fans booed her throughout the match and she vowed never to return to the desert event.
The sisters' father, Richard, later said he heard racial taunts and there were accusations at the time that he decided in advance which sister would win their matches against each other.
Williams announced the news of her 2015 withdrawal on her Instagram account while the first semi-final was in the third set, shortly after tournament officials confirmed it.
"4 months ago I began a journey to play Indian Wells and it was amazing. I never dreamed I could do it," she wrote.
"But I would not have been able to do this without my fans. Though it ended early due to injury this year, I have to say I cannot wait to try again next year."
