2 days Ago
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Wimbledon favorite withdrew on Monday because of an injured shoulder. The two-time Australian Open champion was seeded third at the All England Club and was supposed to play Emina Bektas of the United States in the first round on Day 1 at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament. “Heartbroken to have to tell you all that I won’t be able to play The Championships this year.
I tried everything to get myself ready but unfortunately my shoulder is not cooperating,” Sabalenka . “I pushed myself to the limit in practice today to try my best, but my team explained that playing would only make things much worse. This tournament means so much to me and I promise I’ll be back stronger than ever next year.
” Sabalenka was favored to win the women’s championship at Wimbledon, according to . A semifinalist at the All England Club each of the last two times she appeared there, Sabalenka was replaced in the draw on Monday by Erika Andreeva, who lost in qualifying last week. A little more than a week ago, Sabalenka stopped playing during the first set of her quarterfinal at the Berlin Ladies Open, citing pain in her shoulder.
She said she had a muscle injury that she called “very frustrating.” “The most annoying thing is that I can do anything. I can practice; I can hit my groundstrokes.
I’m struggling with serving. That’s really annoying. You don’t feel like you’re injured,” Sabalenka said.
“If you give me some weights, I’m going to .
