Upset in Wimbledon opener, Injured Ana Ivanovic to rest wrist ahead of Olympics

Alex Fisher

Upset in Wimbledon opener, Injured Ana Ivanovic to rest wrist ahead of Olympics image

Ana Ivanovic will rest a wrist injury for the next six weeks to give her the best chance of challenging for gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics.

The former world No. 1 from Serbia was a surprise upset on day one at Wimbledon on Monday as she was beaten in straight sets by world No. 223 Ekaterina Alexandrova.

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Following her 6-2, 7-5 defeat, Ivanovic confirmed a right wrist problem had been hampering her throughout the build-up to the Grand Slam event and had made it difficult for her to control her shots.

Ivanovic revealed that the injury nearly forced her withdrawal from the grass-court tournament, before confirming she will miss all of July to recover ahead of the Games.

"I think I'm going to take some time off," she told a media conference. "My next tournament would be the Olympics. So hopefully that will give it enough time to settle down. Hope I will have an MRI and see what's going on."

Ivanovic admitted that partaking in the Olympics is a big deal to her.

"It's a great honor for me to represent my country [at the Olympics]. To play Rio, it's been my big dream, to be part of it. I'm very, very thrilled."

Alex Fisher