Elena Rybakina was forced to withdraw from the 2024 Indian Wells Open, but she was back on the courts ahead of her travel to Miami.
The Kazakhstani player is having a really interesting year so far, with a lot of great performances but also some bad luck. Unfortunately, one of her worst outings happened at the Australian Open, which was a rather shocking loss to a player she normally beats comfortably.
Outside of that, Rybakina has had a pretty good year so far, with a trophy and another final in Doha. The Dubai Championships ended in a withdrawal, which is the same thing that happened at the Indian Wells Open.
It was a hugely disappointing development for Rybakina, as she was actually the defending champion. She performed well in the desert in years past and was looking forward to this year as well, but she had to withdraw.
Luckily, it wasn't an injury, so she could get back to the tennis court rather quickly, which she did earlier this week. She held a practice session in Indian Wells ahead of her flight to Miami.
Rybakina should already be in Miami getting used to the conditions at the second WTA 1000 event of the Sunshine Double. She made the final last year but suffered a stunning defeat to Petra Kvitova, so it's not a bad place for her to be.
We'll see if her not playing for a while had any impact on her game, but the format of the event will certainly allow her to play herself into shape. It's not that unusual for Rybakina to ramp up during an event.
The last two events didn't quite go as well as she had hoped, but the Miami Open will give her another shot at a title. There are many reasons to be optimistic.
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