Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

Serena Williams has announced she is taking the rest of the year off from tennis and will miss the Singapore-based WTA Finals as well as next week’s Beijing Open.

Williams has not played since losing the US Open semi-final to Roberta Vinci three weeks ago and being thwarted in her bid to become the first player since Steffi Graf 27 years ago to complete a Grand Slam.

The player who turned 34 years of age five days ago, said she had withdrawn from the remaining events on her 2015 schedule to address her health and to heal.

“This is a very difficult decision, but one ultimately made because of the love of the game,” said Williams, who regardless of what happens in the next two tournaments is guaranteed the year-ending world no.1 spot for the fifth time in her career. “And I want to compete as well as I can, for as long as I can.”

Williams revealed that, regardless of the fact she has won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon titles to take her collection of major singles titles to 21, she has played hurt for much of the year. “Whether it was my elbow, my knee, or in the finals moments after a certain match in Flushing, my heart,” she said. “I’m a fierce competitor.”

Williams only lost three of her 56 singles matches in 2015 and she continued: “My journey in tennis this year has been at times exhilarating, at times disappointing. But in every case, in victory and defeat, it has been extremely rewarding. . . I am grateful beyond words.”

Earlier this week Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou stressed concerns about the player’s motivation to continue for the rest of the year.

“When she lost in Toronto [in August], she was very disappointed, but we went back to practice the morning after because she wanted to win the US Open,” Mouratoglou said. “But after this year and the three Grand Slams [she won in 2015], the question is how high her motivation is to play those tournaments. I don’t think she should play if the motivation is not really high.”

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.