Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, seeded fourth at the US Open, has pulled out of the tournament due to an undisclosed injury. Rybakina was supposed to face French qualifier Jessika Ponchet in the second round on Thursday but had to withdraw before the match.
“Unfortunately, I have to withdraw from my match today due to my injuries,” Rybakina stated in a statement. “I did not want to finish the last Grand Slam of the year this way but I have to listen to my body, and I hope I can close out the remainder of the year strong.”
With Rybakina’s withdrawal, Ponchet — who is not ranked — now advances to the third round.
No. 4 seed Elena Rybakina withdrew from the 2024 US Open on Thursday due to injury, putting French qualifier Jessika Ponchet into Round 3.https://t.co/Rud4WHsJ6v
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 29, 2024
This marks the seventh time this year that Rybakina has withdrawn from events due to health issues. During the summer, the 25-year-old had to retire from a match at the Grass Court Championships Berlin in June and withdraw from the Eastbourne International the following week.
Rybakina made a comeback at Wimbledon — where she won her only Grand Slam title in 2022 — but was defeated in the semifinals by eventual champion Barbora Krejčiková. She then had to skip the 2024 Paris Olympics due to acute bronchitis.
As the fourth seed, Rybakina was the top player in her quarter of the draw. In her absence, the highest-seeded player in that section is now the 15th seed, Anna Kalinskaya.