Former Wimbledon queen Serena Williams has vowed to battle on, but the signs are there that at just 23 years old her best years in tennis may be behind her.

Williams was comprehensively outplayed 6-3, 7-6 late Saturday in the third round by 30-year-old compatriot Jill Craybas, a player who turned to professional tennis late after taking a degree in telecommunications.

And in an emotional post-match press conference Williams veered from teary resignation, to confused mutterings, to defiant pledges about her future.

Williams had scant praise for her opponent who "just got the balls back.

"She didn't have to do anything exceptionally well, just pretty much had to show up.

"I guess I had a lot of rust. I kept making errors. I would have been better off staying at home to be honest," she added before calling for another tissue to dab her eyes.

Staying at home is what the younger of the Williams sisters has been doing a lot of since she won the Australian Open at the start of the year when sheer guts and determination saw her through tough three-setters against Maria Sharapova and Lindsay Davenport.

An ankle injury forced her out of three of the next four tournaments she played in and following a lacklustre loss to Italy's Francesa Schiavone in Rome in mid-May she withdrew completely from the competitive scene.

Williams let pass the French Open and she only returned to the fray for Wimbledon at the start of last week after taking a late decision on her participation.

She struggled through her first two games against lowly-ranked players complaining of persistent pains in her ankle. And such is her fall from grace that her early exit is less of a surprise than it would have been just a few weeks ago.

Losing though is a hard experience to deal with said the player who, along with sister Venus, has taken women's tennis on to a new more physical and athletic level in the last five years.

"I'm just so used to winning these kind of matches," she said of her defeat to Craybas.

"It's hard when you go out there and you can't make a shot and you've been making them for years. It's like a battle."

Williams admits though that injuries apart, her present woes are partly self-inflicted.

"I definitely think it's important for me to practice harder than what I have been doing," she said.

"I've never been big on practicing. I love getting out there and playing. But I think I'll have to do a little more practicing."

Source: China Daily