Daily Math Puzzle: 2026-07-13

All of Serena's scheduled opponents, one by one, either forfeited their matches or were disqualified before playing her. — The puzzle's trick lies in challenging the assumption that a player *must* actively compete in matches to win a tournament. While highly improbable, tournament rules universally allow for wins by forfeit or disqualification. If, through an extraordinary series of events, every single opponent Serena was scheduled to play against – from the first round all the way to the final – either failed to show up, withdrew, or was disqualified for other reasons (e.g., injury, rule violation, positive drug test), she would automatically advance through every round. In such a scenario, she would indeed be crowned champion without ever having to hit a single ball against an opponent on the court.