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Elena Rybakina recently pulled out of the ongoing 2024 US Open, hours before her second-round clash against Frenchwoman Jessika Ponchet, which was scheduled to take place on Thursday, August 29. The Kazakh has cited injury as the reason behind her decision to pull out of the hardcourt Major.
The ongoing tennis season for Rybakina has so far been marred by withdrawals, and the 2024 US Open is the eighth big event that the World No. 4 has pulled out from. Read on to know about all the prestigious events that Rybakina has withdrawn from this year, and why.
Elena Rybakina's Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells), Italian Open and ecotrans Ladies Open (German Open) withdrawals
Rybakina was the No. 4 seed at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships back in February. After receiving a first-round bye, she overcame former World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka in her opener and then edged Magdalena Frech in the next round, setting up a quarterfinal clash against Jasmine Paolini.
However, Paolini received a walkover into the semifinals after the Kazakh withdrew citing a gastrointestinal illness. The Wimbledon 2022 winner's gastrointestinal issues were not resolved by the time the BNP Paribas Open commenced in Indian Wells. This compelled Rybakina to pull out of the prestigious WTA 1000 event, where she was drawn to face Nadia Podoroska in her opening match.
During the claycourt swing, the Kazakh cited illness and withdrew again, hours before she was slated to start her Italian Open title defense against Irina-Camelia Begu. Fast forward to the grasscourt swing, and Rybakina retired mid-match during her quarterfinal contest against Azarenka at the ecotrans Ladies Open in Berlin with an unspecified injury.
Eastbourne International, Paris Olympics, National Bank Open (Canadian Open), and US Open saw Elena Rybakina pull out as well
The World No. 4's withdrawals during the grasscourt swing didn't end at the ecotrans Ladies Open in Berlin. Rybakina also decided to skip the Eastbourne International, one of the most important events in the buildup to the Wimbledon Championships. This time, the Kazakh did not cite injury or illness but instead maintained that a scheduling change compelled her to pull out of the grasscourt event.
Rybakina was one of the best hopes for Kazakhstan to secure a medal at the Paris Olympics. However, she withdrew from the Games due to her then-ongoing battle with acute bronchitis, a respiratory infection. The World No. 4 later revealed that she had contracted the infection following her run to the Wimbledon semifinals. The condition persisted beyond the Olympics and led to the Kazakh withdrawing from the National Bank Open in Toronto as well.
Ahead of her 2024 US Open campaign, Rybakina surprisingly announced that she had parted ways with longtime coach Stefano Vukov. Later, at a press conference, she dodged questions fielded to her by reporters on the subject. Eventually, the Kazakh retired from the hardcourt Major citing injury.
Despite Rybakina's concerning spate of withdrawals this year, she remains very much in contention for the year-end WTA Finals. In the WTA live rankings, the Kazakh finds herself third, behind rivals Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka.
