Serena Williams's Wimbledon hopes were hanging by a thread on Monday after rain came to her rescue in the fourth round against Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova.

The American seventh seed had battled back to 5-5 from 5-2 down in the second set after taking the first 6-2 when she collapsed in agony clutching her left calf.

In tears and screaming with pain, the 2002 and 2003 champion received lengthy treatment at the baseline before gingerly getting back on her feet to roars of encouragement from the Centre Court crowd.

Hantuchova ruthlessly held serve to lead 6-5 with Williams barely able to move. Williams received more treatment from the trainer before, amazingly, holding serve despite hobbling.

Trying desperately to stretch her stricken muscle, Williams went 4-0 down in the tiebreak, then won a couple of points before rain intervened for the fourth time in the match.

Three-times former champion Venus Williams meanwhile has survived a hair-raising third round match against Akiko Morigami of Japan, winning 6-2 3-6 7-5 but looking far from comfortable.

The American former world number one had seemed to be cruising when she eased to a convincing first set lead in the match which started on Saturday.

Justine Henin also marched into the Wimbledon quarter-finals with a straightforward 6-2 6-2 defeat of a lacklustre Patty Schnyder.

The top-seeded Belgian, bidding for the one title she needs to complete a career grand slam, needed just 56 minutes to end her Swiss opponent's weak challenge.

Williams kept herself in the second set by saving six set points in the seventh game and then breaking in the next. But Morigami unleashed some accurate shots down the line finally to snatch the set.

Seemingly intent on making it difficult for herself, Williams dropped serve in the eighth game of the third, before breaking back.

In the end it was a mistake by Morigami that handed Williams the match, with the Japanese player putting her return into the net. Williams jumped up and down in celebration and, most likely, relief.

Henin did not bring her best game to the court on Monday, but did not need to against the normally gritty Schnyder.

"I was a bit surprised the match was so quick," Henin told reporters. "I've done my job perfectly so far."

Schnyder lost her opening two service games with a catalogue of unforced errors and although she did get on the scoreboard when Henin dropped serve at 3-0 there was only ever going to be one outcome.

The 28-year-old Schnyder, making her first foray into the fourth round here in her 12th appearance at Wimbledon, served three double faults to hand Henin a 4-1 lead.

Henin won the first set when, at 40-30, she had a forehand called out but the subsequent challenge showed she had been wronged. The point was replayed and Schnyder obliged by making a mess of a service return.

The pattern continued in the second set with Henin in cruise control and she finished off the one-sided contest with a booming serve down the middle.

Henin, who completed a hat-trick of French Open titles last month, has dropped just 15 games in her four rounds so far.

She said the conditions had been tough, although she was lucky to get through quickly and on schedule despite the rain that has blighted the tournament.

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