Iga Swiatek faces a race against time to be fully fit for the French Open later this month after she was forced to retire from her quarter-final match in Rome with a thigh injury.
The world No.1 was taking on reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in a late-night encounter at the Foro Italico on Wednesday evening. Swiatek looked set to claim a straightforward victory after leading 6-2, 4-2, before her opponent clawed her way back. Then in the second set tiebreaker, the Pole was seen wincing during the penultimate point that was played after sliding on the court.
After losing the second set, Swiatek left the court for a medical timeout before returning with strapping on her upper right leg. She only managed to play four more games before retiring at 2-6, 7-6(3), 2-2. It is the first time in her career that the three-time Grand Slam champion has retired from a match on the WTA Tour.
“I saw something happen in the tiebreak, on almost the last point but I didn’t know how serious it is,” wtatennis.com quoted Rybakina as saying afterwards about her opponent. “I saw that the first two games she started really aggressive so I understood that she couldn’t really move that much. But she was still making good returns and I knew that I had to be focused. I know myself that if anything is hurting you’re trying to go for it and a lot of times it works. So she probably did the same, but after, I guess it was too much.”
Swiatek’s exit from Rome ends her 14-match winning streak at the tournament where she was bidding to become the first woman since Conchita Martinez to win the title for a third year in a row. There is yet to be any comment from her team about the extent of her latest injury. The setback comes 10 days just before the start of the French Open where Swiatek is the defending champion.
Meanwhile, Rybakina will next play Jelena Ostapenko in the Rome semi-finals on Friday. Ostapenko defeated Paula Badosa 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, in her quarter-final match. It will be the second meeting between the two players this season after the Australian Open in January which Rybakina won in straight sets.
