Iga Swiatek joins the likes of Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina and Emma Navarro as she withdraws from Korea Open in their first WTA 500 year
Iga Swiatek became the latest player to withdraw from the Korea Open as she still hasn't recovered from fatigue.
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Iga Swiatek (Image via X)
The WTA event in Korea started in 2004 and for the first time, it is scheduled as a WTA 500 tournament after being upgraded from WTA 250. Unfortunately for Korean fans, top players won’t feature in the event as World No. 1 Iga Swiatek became the latest player to withdraw from it, joining the likes of Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina, and Emma Navarro.
2024 US Open finalist Pegula suffered a rib injury which forced her to withdraw. Rybakina has a back injury, while Navarro changed her schedule. On the other hand, 2014 Korea Open winner Karolina Pliskova is nursing her leg injury. As per reports, Swiatek has still not recovered from fatigue after the US Open where she reached the quarterfinals and lost to Pegula in straight sets.
My physical condition has not yet returned to normal since the US Open. I cannot go to Seoul. Please understand that I have no choice but to change my schedule. I definitely want to visit Seoul next year and play a great match in front of Korean fans.Iga Swiatek told the organizing committee (H/T: Tennis Korea)
In the absence of these top players, World No. 72 Emma Raducanu is considered the favorite to win the title. She reportedly arrived in the Korean capital on Thursday to practice before the start of the tournament.
The Brit was initially offered the wild card but the withdrawal of the aforementioned players means she will enter the main draw directly. Along with her, players like Zhang Shuai, Amanda Anisimova, Viktoriya Tomova, and Sloane Stephens will also be playing in the main draw.
The Korea Open starts on Saturday and will be played at the Olympic Park Tennis Center in Seoul. The main draw is scheduled to start on Monday, while the finals for both singles and doubles are slated to be held on September 22.
John McEnroe thinks Iga Swiatek is unable to make adjustments on faster surfaces
After the Paris Olympics, Iga Swiatek played the Cincinnati Masters where she reached the semifinals before her US Open exit. John McEnroe pointed out a problem in her game as he thinks Swiatek is either reluctant to play defense or is not able to adapt herself on faster surfaces.
One issue for me is she doesn’t want to play defense at all. At times, she should pull back when the offense isn’t going as well as it can do on clay.John McEnroe said at a Eurosport event
Many think that Swiatek is vulnerable on surfaces other than the clay where she won three back-to-back titles this summer, including the French Open. After securing her fourth title at the Roland Garros, Swiatek won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics.
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Gouri Das
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