Defending Miami Open champion Iga Swiatek has just announced that she is withdrawing from the tournament due to a rib injury. In February, Swiatek contracted a strong infection and “a strong episode of a tough cough led to a rib injury.” Swiatek, 21, was the top-seeded player in Miami.
Swiatek, who had a first-round bye in Miami, was scheduled to play Claire Liu in her Miami opener. Julia Grabher, ranked at No 94 in the world, is replacing Swiatek in the Miami main draw and the Austrian lucky loser will be taking on Liu in the second round.
Also, Swiatek won’t be representing Poland in their Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers tie against Kazakhstan, that is scheduled to take place from April 14-15.
Swiatek’s statement on withdrawing from the Miami Open
“You know that in and after Doha I was struggling with a strong infection.
I was allowed to play, but a strong episode of a tough cough led to a rib injury. We were trying to handle it and continue to play as long as it was safe for me. We were analyzing the data in the last days and my doctor prepared my diagnosis.
Unfortunately, I’m still feeling a lot of discomfort and pain and I can’t compete. need to take a break to recover and I have to pull out of the Miami Open and Billie Jean King Cup. I will keep you updated about where I play next, because it depends on my process of recovering and the recommendation of my medical team.
I have the best team behind me, we only need some time to deal with the injury. It’s a truly difficult call to not play in Miami and BJKC, but health is the most important. I’m grateful this is the first health issue in a long time and I was able to compete in perfect shape for so long, but that’s sports, it happens sometimes, without our control.
Time to accept it and get well as soon possible,” Swiatek said in a statement.
