Elena Rybakina Withdraws From 2023 Zhengzhou Open

| by Evita Mueller

Due to a back problem, Elena Rybakina won't be playing next week at the Zhengzhou Open after withdrawing from the event.

Similar to Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina opted out of the Zhenzhou Open, and she stated a back problem as a reason for withdrawal. The Kazakhstani player played at the China Open, and she played well, besting world number one Aryna Sabalenka en route to the semi-final.

That's as far as she would go though as she was beaten by Liudmila Samsonova in the semi-final, which ended her campaign at the WTA 1000 event in the Chinese capital.

That will be it from Rybakina in China as she won't play next week as planned but rather lay low until the WTA Finals later this month. It's not a huge surprise because, much like Gauff, Rybakina doesn't need to play.

Her spot in the WTA Finals is secure; she's got enough matches under her belt, and getting ready for Cancun will be her top priority. The reason for signing up for the event likely had to do with her wanting to get some matches in case she did lose early in Beijing.

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It wouldn't have been ideal to go too long without tennis before the WTA Finals as the sport is so momentum-based. We'll see how it works out for Rybakina in the end as her season has been mostly great with some minor ups and downs.

She's demonstrated a good level in the China Open making her one of the players more likely to perform well at the finals. It's a good development, as she seemingly dealt with an illness before this stretch.

The illness was the cause of her withdrawal from the Japan Open, so making the semi-final a week later in Beijing is good news. We'll see how well it translates to very different conditions in Cancun later this month.

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