Serena Williams pulled out of the Yarra Valley Classic on Friday with a right shoulder injury, few hours after her quarter-final victory in the Australian Open tuneup event.
Williams, the winner of 23 Grand Slam singles titles, had set up a mouth-watering semi-final clash against world number one Australian Ash Barty after defeating fellow American Danielle Collins 6-2, 4-6, (10-6) on Margaret Court Arena.
"Serena Williams has withdrawn from the Yarra Valley Classic singles draw due to a right shoulder injury," the women's tour said on Twitter.
"Ashleigh Barty advances to the final by walkover."
Consortium including Amazon's Bezos to buy minority stake in Liverpool
Tanzid century stuns Australia, keeps Bangladesh on top in Darwin
India's Tata Steel offload top-flight club Jamshedpur for $1
Shelton wins back-to-back Canadian Opens with victory over Nakashima
Swiatek defeats Rybakina to claim Canadian Open title
