WATCH: Iga Swiatek FORCED to retire against Elena Rybakina in Rome courtesy of a ‘brutal’ upper leg injury just days before the French Open
Swiatek out of Rome with injury, just days before the French Open tips off.
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Iga Swiatek injury (Image via Jimmie48 Photography)
You are the best tennis player in the world. Just a few days before the biggest prize on clay takes place, the last thing you want is an injury. The Rafael Nadal injury saga has already kept the viewers extremely scared and worried, another such news won’t be easy to take.
Believe it or not, it’s happened yet again. Elena Rybakina has once again, in 2023, found a way to overcome Iga Swiatek. However, it wasn’t just a regular scoreline loss; it was worse. Swiatek suffered an injury late in the game, just days before the French Open, forcing her to retire.
The match was extremely intense, with both players taking a set each. Swiatek breezed through the first set clinching it 6-2 comfortably. She was looking on course to take this match in 2, but Rybakina was still hanging by a thread. Rybakina converted crucial points and forced a second-set tiebreaker. She eventually clinched the second set, as the scoreline read 2-6 7-6.
The decider was also going neck to neck before Swiatek retired at the end of the 4th game. This came as a shocker to everyone viewing as she looked well on course to move to the semi-finals in Rome. Many have also kept high expectations from her to lift her 3rd Roland Garros title. However, this injury has dented her chances.
The Swiatek camp has said that this is an upper leg injury. It was preventing Swiatek’s movement on the court. Well, she has almost ten days left before the French Open gets underway to recover. All the eyes will be on her recovery as we get closer to the biggest event on clay.
What next for Elena Rybakina?
Elena Rybakina’s win over top seed Iga Swiatek means the lead has increased. She now holds a 3-1 record over the Polish star. This is also her third win over Swiatek this year. That is the most anyone has had over the top seed in 2023. Australian Open, Indian Wells, and now the Italian Open. Rybakina has been able to topple Swiatek on the big stages.
She will now take on Latvian Jelena Ostapenko in her semi-final clash. Ostapenko reached the semis with her hard-fought three-set battle over Paula Badosa 6-2 4-6 6-3. This will be a mouth-watering clash as both players have displayed high quality over the last ten days. Both players will look to give it their all, as a title win here in Rome will perfectly set them up for Paris.
In case you missed it:
- “It depends on if Rafael Nadal plays,” Novak Djokovic gives his verdict on the French Open odds this season
- Will Rafael Nadal play the French Open 2023?
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Manan Mehta
(215 Articles Published)