Marketa Vondrousova and Barbora Strycova ended their US Open doubles campaign in heartbreaking circumstances in the round of 16 on Monday.
The Czech women's duo of Vondrousova and Strycova withdrew from their match against Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski after previously cruising through the first two rounds at the US Open without dropping a set.
However, Vondrousova was captured on the sidelines with an ice pack on her elbow and the injury was eventually enough to see the Czech doubles team withdraw from the match. Vondrousova appeared in distress as she was consoled by the 37-year-old Strycova, who is set to retire from tennis after the US Open elimination.
The Czech partners have been a team for a long time and have achieved plenty in the women's doubles category in recent years. In 2019, their best run came at the Australian Open when they reached the semi-finals, but were eventually defeated by Samantha Stosur and Zhang Shuai.
However, Strycova has been more prolific with other partners in the women's doubles event. Alongside Hsieh Su-Wei, Strycova has won Wimbledon twice, with her most recent success at SW19 coming in the 2023 edition of the Grand Slam, while the Czech player's best major run in singles also came in London when she reached the semi-finals in 2019.
Ultimately, the withdrawal by Vondrousova will come as a bitter blow, and the 24-year-old was visibly shaken after her elbow injury forced her out of the the women's doubles at Flushing Meadows.
Although, the Czech player is still in contention to play in the singles main draw, and she is set to face US home player Madison Keys in the quarter-finals as she aims to add to her major silverware after winning Wimbledon in July.
The most heart-breaking part about Vondrousova's decision to withdraw was the fact that it was Strycova's last career tournament, and the Czech legend certainly didn't want to end her career with a withdrawal.
"Yeah, I mean, I just feel my arm, you know. So we decided, you know, not to play today. It's a bit sad, because it's Barbora's last tournament, so it was a tough decision. You have to put your health first. Yeah, we decided together."
"Yeah, I mean, she's a great person, you know, so she told me, It's okay. I was, like, It's your last tournament. I don't want to do it. She was, like, Okay, we have to play 100% or we don't play. So it was okay. She's a great person."
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