Another bad news has shaken the Internazionali BNL d’Italia: Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from the tournament due to illness. The Kazakh tennis player, defending champion, announced the news a few hours before her match in Rome.
The organizers of the WTA 1000 in Rome at the same time announced the 24-year-old’s withdrawal.
“The player is forced to withdraw from the tournament due to illness and she will be replaced by Oceane Dodin. We wish our 2023 champion a speedy recovery,” wrote the tournament ina post on X.
Elena Rybakina is forced to withdraw from the tournament due to illness and will be replaced by Oceane Dodin.
We wish our 2023 champion a speedy recovery. ❤️#IBI24 | @WTA
— Internazionali BNL d’Italia (@InteBNLdItalia) May 10, 2024
Rybakina was considered on the eve of one of the potential rivals to Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, the two favorites to win the title. This is the third withdrawal of the season – after the WTA 1000 in Dubai and Indian Wells – for the Kazakh girl, who was fresh from the semi-final in Madrid.
“Unfortunately I don’t feel well enough to compete. I have great memories of last year and I was very keen to defend my title. Rome is so special to me and I can’t wait to return next year to win the title back and playing in front of the Italian fans,” said Elena, explaining the reason for her withdrawal.
A few words from our reigning champ ❤️🩹#IBI24 pic.twitter.com/IjJ9gOQvLB
— Internazionali BNL d’Italia (@InteBNLdItalia) May 10, 2024
Another hard blow for the event in Rome, which seems to have almost a curse in this 2024 edition. With the Kazakh leaving the scene prematurely, without even playing a match, Coco Gauff can further increase the gap in the rankings and secure the top 3 in the WTA ranking. The American has now become the number one candidate to break the dualism of the Pole and the Belarusian on the WTA Tour. the young US star finds himself on Swiatek’s side of the table, who he could meet in the semi-finals.
