Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from another tournament, this time the 2024 China Open in Beijing, weakening the field at the WTA 1000 event even further.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion made a strong start to the season, but her recent months mean those successes in the early months of 2024 feel like a long time ago.
Rybakina won three titles in the first four months of the year at the Brisbane International, Abu Dhabi Open, and Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart. She dismantled Aryna Sabalenka in the final in Brisbane.
She also reached two WTA 1000 finals in Doha and Miami, losing them to Iga Swiatek and Danielle Collins, who also withdrew from the China Open. Nonetheless, it was still a great opening few months of the year for Rybakina.
The Kazakhstani's struggles began after she lost in the Wimbledon semifinal to Barbora Krejcikova after being the favorite to win the tournament. Krejcikova went on to secure the title at SW19.
Rybakina then withdrew from the 2024 Paris Olympics, saying she had contracted bronchitis. The news devastated her fans, but the 25-year-old said her doctor would not allow her to travel to Paris for the Games.
The world No. 4 made her return to tennis at the Cincinnati Open against Leylah Fernandez. She could not convert match points in her contest against the Canadian and fell to a 6-3, 6-7, 4-6 defeat.
Bombshell news followed just a few days before the US Open. Rybakina announced she was splitting from her longtime coach, Stefano Vukov, who had worked with her for over five years.
Vukov's departure came as a shock. Rybakina did not give a specific reason for the split in her announcement about the move. However, rumors quickly began to emerge about the situation.
The Croatian coach was reportedly banned from the WTA Tour. It is unknown why that may have happened, but Vukov's behavior often attracted controversy during his time with Rybakina.
During her matches, Vukov was regularly accused of being overly aggressive and harsh towards Rybakina. Figures such as Kim Clijsters think more will eventually come out about Rybakina's weird split from Vukov.
The speculation about her split from Vukov became more intense after Rybakina withdrew from the US Open just hours before her scheduled second-round match at Flushing Meadows against Jessika Ponchet.
However, Rybakina's continued absence since then indicates she does have a physical issue. She withdrew from the Korea Open in Seoul, which Beatriz Haddad Maia eventually won by overcoming Daria Kasatkina in the final.
Rybakina has now also withdrawn from the China Open in Beijing. This is due to the same back injury she cited as the reason for her inability to compete at the WTA 500 tournament at the Korea Open.
The Kazakhstani will lose 390 ranking points after reaching the semifinal of the WTA 1000 event last year. Rybakina has not officially confirmed her place at the WTA Finals yet, even though she may qualify without needing any additional points.
Iga Swiatek also withdrew from the China Open. The Pole's decision was due to personal issues, and if Aryna Sabalenka wins the China Open, her No. 1 ranking could be threatened.