Swiss tennis player Timea Bacsinszky has become the latest player to withdraw from the 2018 Australian Open.
Baczsinsky’s decision was confirmed on social media website Twitter by the official account of the Australian Open.
https://twitter.com/AustralianOpen/status/949121393068728320
The 28 year-old from Lausanne had surgery on her right hand in 2017 and has decided that she has not fully recovered in time to feature at the year’s first Grand Slam. Slovakia’s Jana Cepelova will now feature in the main draw as her replacement.
Bacsinszky, a former World No.4, has reached the third round in Melbourne twice. Her best performances at a Grand Slam have come at Roland Garros. She was a semi-finalist in 2015 and 2017.
Bacsinszky’s withdrawal adds to a growing list of names that will be absent from the tournament. The news of Bacsinszky’s absence comes just hours after Serena Williams also announced that she will not play. There are worries about Johanna Konta after the Briton and World No.9 withdrew from her match with Karolina Pliskova in Brisbane with a hip injury.
On the men’s side former world No.1 Andy Murray has already announced he is unable to play due to his ongoing hip injury, whilst Japanese tennis star Kei Nishikori has failed to recover from a wrist injury. There remain concerns over six-time Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic. Djokovic has not played competitively since Wimbledon due to an elbow injury.
Likewise World No.1 and last year’s finalist Rafael Nadal is a doubt after withdrawing from Brisbane. The Spaniard has been troubled by a knee injury since the end of 2017, an issue that forced him to withdraw mid-tournament from both the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals in London.
