MELBOURNE, Australia — Venus Williams has withdrawn from the Australian Open, joining top-ranked Justine Henin-Hardenne as absentees from the first tennis major of the season.

Williams told organizers today she had aggravated a left wrist injury that forced her out of tournaments late last year and from the Hopman Cup mixed teams competition in Perth last week.

The former top-ranked Williams has never won the Australian Open, her best result being a loss in the final to her younger sister Serena in 2003.

Williams had an injury plagued 2006, playing only two matches after Wimbledon and finishing the year at No. 48 in the rankings.

Henin-Hardenne withdrew last week due to undisclosed personal reasons, while Russians Svetlana Kuznetsova and Nadia Petrova are doubtful starters after withdrawing from a warmup event in Sydney this week.

On the men's side, No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal withdrew from the Sydney tournament with a groin problem.