Emma Raducanu and Amanda Anisimova have both been forced to withdraw from their first-round matches at the Qatar Open, in a sad development sure to pile even more pressure on tennis officials. The women’s stars made the difficult calls to pull out within minutes of one another after failing to overcome physical ailments in Doha.
It continues a worrying trend for many of the world’s top players who’ve been forced to withdraw from tournaments in recent days. World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka joined the growing list over the weekend when she decided to pull out of Doha, citing the need for more rest after a gruelling Australian Open campaign.
Women’s tennis stars Emma Raducanu (L) and Amanda Anisimova (R) retired within minutes of one another from their opening round matches at the Qatar Open. Pic: Getty
Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys, Naomi Osaka, Marta Kostyuk, Eva Lys, Loïs Boisson, Iva Jovic, Marketa Vondrousova and Veronika Kudermetova are among the other top female players who’ve made the same decision. With the Qatar Open starting just eight days after the finish of the Australian Open, it’s raised fresh questions around the packed tennis schedule that has left players and fans calling for change.
That scrutiny is sure to intensify after Raducanu and Anisimova were both forced to retire from their first-round matches in Doha. Raducanu was playing off the back of her runner-up finish to Sorana Cirstea at the Transylvania Open over the weekend, which she described as “very difficult, emotionally and physically.”
The British No.1 started brightly against qualifier Camila Osorio after grabbing an early break to claim the opening set 6-2. But World No.80 Osorio regrouped in the second stanza to send the match into a deciding set as Raducanu began to struggle physically.
The 23-year-old was forced to call for the physio after opting not to run for a drop-shot and being broken at the start of the deciding set. Raducanu had her blood pressure checked before going back out on court after a lengthy delay. But she quickly dropped the second game, prompting the Brit to pull the pin after walking to the net to shake hands with her opponent.
Defending champ Amanda Anisimova also retires in Doha
Meanwhile, defending Qatar Open champion Anisimova led by a set and a break midway through her match against Karolína Plíšková. But the American World No. 4 was forced to retire while down 5-7 7-6 (7/3) 4-1 after her condition rapidly deteriorated against the World No. 418.
Anisimova also had her blood pressure checked after losing the second set tiebreak and going 2-1 down in the deciding set. The American became unable to chase down balls from Pliskova in a clear sign of her struggles.
Defending champ Amanda Anisimova was struggling in her first-round match at the Qatar Open before being forced to retire. Pic: Getty
And after dropping the next two games in quick succession, there was an air of inevitability as she called an abrupt halt to the match, ending her hopes of defending the title. “This is not how you want to win,” Plíšková said in her on-court interview. “Although I felt like we played good tennis for those two sets. It went long so of course you start to feel it in the body. I also started to feel it, but luckily I’m through to the next round. I hope she’s gonna be okay for the next week.
with agencies