The return of US Open champion Bianca Andreescu to the WTA Tour has been delayed once again after she pulled out of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
Andreescu, who is yet to play a match in 2020, was hoping to be fit in time to play at the Premier event. Where she won her first professional title 12 months ago after defeating Angelique Kerber in the final. The 19-year-old has been sidelined from the tour since suffering a knee injury during the WTA Finals last November.
“As many of you know, I’ve been working through an injury I suffered last year during the WTA Finals. It’s been a long road to recovery and while I was looking forward to getting back on court and defending my title at Indian Wells, unfortunately I’m still not 100%.” The Canadian said in a press release.
There had originally been hope that Andreescu would be ready in time to play in Indian Wells, which officially gets underway on Monday. Her coach Sylvain Bruneau previously said that the recovery was going well, but they were staying cautious. In the build up to her latest decision, Andreescu travelled to Palm Springs in California to test out her knee.
“Well it’s been a long road, a long recovery, but… it’s going well, especially recently, we’ve had some really good momentum and things are in, I would say, good shape,” Bruneau told Sportsnet.ca on March 3rd.
“She’s just going to start competing when she’s… ability- and health-wise, totally ready and we’re gonna take no risk. So we’re hoping it’s going to be good to go for Indian Wells, but we need a few more days.”
Currently ranked 4th in the world, Andreescu will soon be dropping out of the world’s top 10 due to being unable to defend the 1000 points she won in the tournament last year. It is the latest setback for the youngster, who also withdrew from three out of her last six tournaments in 2019 due to injury-related problems.
Three out of the four women to reach the semi-finals in Indian Wells last year have now pulled out of the tournament. Also absent is Simona Halep and Kerber. 2015 champion Halep is out with a foot injury and Kerber is recovering from a left leg injury.
Ash Barty will be the top seed in the draw, but she is yet to go beyond the fourth round of the tournament in her career.
