Venus Williams could face a fine of up to £37,000 ($50,000) after skipping her post-match press conference following a mixed doubles defeat at Wimbledon. The 46-year-old, playing alongside Kevin Krawietz on a wildcard, lost 6-4, 6-4 to seventh seeds Lloyd Glasspool and Tereza Mihalíková on Court 14, then declined her media request without offering any comment through the WTA or the All England Club.

According to Grand Slam rules, players must attend post-match media duties within a reasonable time frame unless excused on medical or other reasonable grounds, at the discretion of the Grand Slam supervisors. The rulebook explicitly states that it is mandatory for both winning and losing players and teams to participate in media meetings after each game, including walkovers, unless the referee deems there is good cause not to do so. 

It’s the same thing that happened to her sister days earlier. Serena also skipped her press conference after losing to Maya Joint in singles, but escaped punishment once it emerged she had tweaked her knee during the match. Her agent, Jill Smoller, confirmed Wimbledon and WTA medical staff had excused Serena at the time. Venus has offered no such explanation so far, leaving her latest no-show without the same safety net her sister was given.

This is a developing story…