by Kazakh top-four seed Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from the US Open due to an unspecified injury. Rybakina was scheduled to face French qualifier Jessika Ponchet in the second round on Thursday but withdrew before the match.
“Unfortunately, I have to withdraw from today’s match due to my injuries,” Rybakina said in a statement. “I didn’t want to end the last Grand Slam of the year this way, but I have to listen to my body and hope I can finish the rest of the year strong.”
In the absence of Rybakina, Ponchet, who is not ranked, now advances to the third round.
No. 4 seed Elena Rybakina withdrew from the 2024 US Open on Thursday due to injury, dropping French qualifier Jessika Ponchet into the third round.https://t.co/Rud4WHsJ6v
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 29, 2024
The US Open now marks the seventh time this year that Rybakina has withdrawn from competition due to illness or injury. This summer alone, the 25-year-old pulled out of a match at the Grass Court Championships in Berlin in June and withdrew from the Eastbourne International a week later.
Rybakina returned to play at Wimbledon, the tournament where she won her only Grand Slam title, in 2022, but lost in the semifinals to eventual winner Barbora Krejčiková. Rybakina then withdrew from the 2024 Paris Olympics due to acute bronchitis.
Rybakina, seeded No. 4, was the highest seed in her quarter-draw. In her absence, Anna Kalinskaya, seeded No. 15, is the highest-ranked player still in the division.
