Karolina Pliskova has withdrawn from the Madrid Open due to a knee injury but the former world No 1 said she hopes to recover in time for next month’s event in Rome ahead of the French Open.
Pliskova, 15th in the world rankings, said on Twitter she suffered the injury during her quarterfinal defeat by Iga Swiatek at the Stuttgart Open last week.
The Italian Open runs from May 9-20 before Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam of the year, begins on May 28. Pliskova’s best result at the claycourt major came in 2017 when she reached the semifinals.
Meanwhile, Three-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek said she had to learn how to manage the pressure of being world No 1 and not let expectations weigh her down as the Pole prepares to defend her French Open title next month.
The 21-year-old beat Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 6-4 in Sunday’s Stuttgart Open final for her second successful title defence this year, adding to her victory in Doha.
Asked how she settled into her status as world No 1, Swiatek she had tuned out the noise and was focused on her game.
“Last year was really, really tough, and I felt like this season may be tough, because of what people are saying and expectations from the outside,” Swiatek said
“I’m happy that I managed to work through it. That was probably the biggest thing that I had to go through at the beginning of the year.”
Following her fourth-round exit at the Australian Open in January, Swiatek said she had been affected by the pressure and that she had been going into matches hoping not to lose rather than wanting to win.
“Now I feel like I just can use my experience a little bit more, more than worry about stuff,” she said. “I’m just happy that I’m world No 1 for more than a year, and it’s an exciting time.”
The French Open runs from May 28-June 11.