Holder Ons Jabeur withdraws from Madrid Open with calf injury
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Tunisia's Ons Jabeur retired after three games against Iga Swiatek in the Stuttgart Open semi-final.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MADRID – Defending champion Ons Jabeur said on Monday she had withdrawn from this week’s Madrid Open with a calf injury after retiring from the Stuttgart Open at the weekend.
The Tunisian world No. 4 retired after three games against Polish world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the Stuttgart Open semi-final, in which she was injured during the last point of the first game on Saturday.
“Further to many medical exams done, it shows that I have a small tear in my calf and I will need more time to recover,” the 28-year-old Jabeur said on Instagram.
“I’m sad to announce that I won’t be able to compete and defend my title this year at the Madrid Open.
“I would like to wish everyone and the tournament a great event.”
Jabeur, who was on a seven-match winning run after recovering from injury and surgery earlier in 2023, was to face Romania’s Ana Bogdan in the second round of the April 25-May 7 clay tournament in Madrid.
Another player who will not be competing in the Spanish capital is Czech Karolina Pliskova, who is out with a knee injury.
But the former world No. 1 said she hopes to recover in time for May’s event in Rome ahead of the French Open.
Pliskova, 15th in the world rankings, said on Twitter she suffered the injury during her Stuttgart Open quarter-final defeat, also against Swiatek.
The Italian Open runs from May 9 to 20 before Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam of the year, begins on May 28 in the French capital.
It remains to be seen if Jabeur, the runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2022, will play in Rome and be fit enough for the French Open.
The Madrid Open will also be missing two big stars in the men’s draw.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic pulled out of the event on Saturday, joining Rafael Nadal in missing the tournament as the two French Open favourites battle against time to be fit for the Grand Slam.
Both men are vying for a record-extending 23rd Slam title at Roland Garros.
Djokovic, a two-time French Open winner, has been struggling with an elbow problem while Nadal, champion in Paris on 14 occasions, has been sidelined with a hip injury since January. REUTERS, AFP
