WUHAN — Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from the upcoming WTA 1000 Wuhan Open with an ongoing foot issue, headlining seven exits from the field after her 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 second-round loss to world No. 118 Alina Charaeva at the Beijing Open on Saturday.
The 27-year-old, who was playing her first match back since her US Open triumph, said she has been struggling since New York and missed the Billie Jean King Cup Finals last month as world No. 1. "Obviously it was a very tough day out there. There was a lot going on after the US Open victory. I didn't get a lot of chances to sleep and recover. Congratulations to Alina. She played a very good match, and I felt my foot a little bit at the end of the match. So it's time to rest a little bit and see what is next in the upcoming weeks," Rybakina said. She added, "Thank you to all the fans for supporting and see you next year, Beijing. Next, I will take a week to rest and hopefully get my foot back to 100% so I can compete in the following tournaments to complete the 2026 season." It is not yet known how long her break will be.
Rybakina joins long-term absentees Victoria Mboko and Hailey Baptiste, both recovering from serious knee injuries, on the sidelines. Former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, 34, said on Instagram earlier this week she needs time to "heal properly" and is ending her season prematurely, adding it was "nothing serious" but she wants to return fresh after a busy 2026. Former top-10 player Emma Navarro, 25, also announced she will not play again this year, revealing she has been suffering with Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) and the autoimmune disorder Hashimoto's hypothyrodisim. "I gained some weight this year. But I also gained my life back. I have enough energy to seize every day, to train or compete as hard as I want to, and to live a life outside of tennis," Navarro said.
Former Wimbledon and US Open finalist Amanda Anisimova is also out for the season with a wrist injury, while 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys, 31, has withdrawn from Wuhan without yet revealing the reason. The exits follow a wave of withdrawals from the Beijing Open that included Jessica Pegula (unspecified), Marta Kostyuk (wrist) and Sorana Cirstea (calf).
With Rybakina, Navarro, Anisimova, Keys, Pliskova, Mboko and Baptiste all sidelined, the Wuhan field has been significantly thinned. Organizers will monitor the entry list in the coming days as more withdrawals could emerge ahead of the WTA 1000 event.