Elena Rybakina may have had another mysterious withdrawal but this time there is an official cause listed as it is stated on the WTA website that the Kazakh tennis star pulled out of Seoul due to a back injury.
After missing some time due to acute bronchitis and returning to action in Cincinnati, the 25-year-old stunningly fired her long-time coach Stefano Vukov just before the start of the US Open. A few days later, the world No. 4 started with a win over Destanee Aiava at Flushing Meadows but was very secretive when asked to address her coaching change.
Then, rumors started to swirl around that Vukov was removed from the WTA coaches list and there may be something deeper in the 2022 Wimbledon champion abruptly ending her partnership with her coach. That same day, Rybakina was slated to play her second-round match against Jessika Ponchet but withdrew and just cited “injuries” without clarifying what exactly.
Considering the circumstances, that move left many wondering what was really happening and if everything was OK with the eight-time WTA champion
After the US Open, the 25-year-old’s next scheduled tournament was next week’s WTA 500 event in Seoul. But once again, she pulled out and that sparked the same conversations that occurred after she withdrew from her match at Flushing Meadows.
But now, it is being revealed that Rybakina did list an injury as the reason – and it’s the same injury that plagued her last year.
Truth be told, Rybakina has battled health issues throughout 2024
After dealing with an illness at the start of the season, the 2023 Indian Wells champion also wasn’t able to defend her title in the desert due to gastrointestinal illness. A month and a half later, she was forced to miss another WTA 1000 tournament after withdrawing from Rome due to illness.
After the Rome withdrawal, Rybakina managed to compete at the French Open and reach the quarterfinal before getting upset by Jasmine Paolini. Following the exit, the 25-year-old said she wasn’t in the best possible condition because “health issues” left a negative impact on her.
