Foot injury stops Serena Williams in her tennis tracks till April 2011

LONDON - Serena Williams may not play again until next April because of her mysterious foot injury.

Wimbledon champion Williams suffered a gashed right foot when she stepped on broken glass in a German restaurant last July.

It forced her to withdraw from the US Open and she has already pulled out of the Australian Open that begins next month.

But, according to the Daily Express, many are asking why the injury is taking so long to heal amid fears that there may be another problem with the former world No1.

Williams is wearing a protective boot from her foot to her knee and said: “I hope to be out of the cast and back on court by the spring.”

Williams has revealed that she needed 12 stitches in one foot and six in the other and that her big toe was badly affected.

But that long delay means she could miss the French Open that begins in May and then be in a race against time to defend her Wimbledon title.

The smokescreens that are being put up around Williams at the moment are leading to concerns that there may be more to all this than meets the eye. Explanations are being demanded, but the Williams camp has closed ranks. (ANI)