Tennis fans extended overwhelming support towards Iga Swiatek after an injury forced the two-time defending champion’s retirement from the Italian Open quarter-final.
On Wednesday, May 17, Swiatek took on Elena Rybakina for a place in the semi-finals in Rome. The Pole started off strong, breaking Rybakina’s serve twice to take an early 3-0 lead in the first set.She carried her momentum forward in the second set as well, racing to a 3-1 lead before the Kazakh mounted a strong comeback to level the scores at 4-4. Rybakina extended her winning record in tiebreaks this season to 9-1 after clinching the second set.
During the set break, Iga Swiatek called for a medical timeout and had the upper area of her right leg taped up. Despite her movement being visibly hampered due to the injury, she made an effort to continue playing the deciding set. However, the World No. 1 was eventually forced to retire from the match at 6-2, 6-7(3), 2-2 after two hours and 21 minutes due to the injury.A fan expressed their support for Swiatek’s “sensible” decision to retire instead of injuring herself further by continuing to play.
“I’m happy Iga is part of the sensible side of injury management, retiring to prevent any further damage, not carrying on to the bitter end,” the fan tweeted.
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Several other fans expressed that it was heartbreaking to see the three-time Grand Slam champion struggle with the injury.
“Same bro it’s devastating…she was doing so well. Then the slide, tears in her eyes… it got me so much..But she’s stronger than all of us, I swear,” another fan chimed in.
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Following the match, Elena Rybakina expressed her concern for Iga Swiatek’s well-being and wished her a quick recovery.
“It’s never good to finish a match like this. It was a really good match. I hope it’s nothing serious for Iga & I just wish her a speedy recovery,” Rybakina said in her post-match interview.
Rybakina now leads 3-1 in her head-to-head against Swiatek. She previously ousted the Pole from the 2023 Australian Open and subsequently ended her title defense at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.The Kazakh will now take on Jelena Ostapenko on Friday, May 19 for a place in the Italian Open final.
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