French Open: Iga Swiatek's title defence on knife edge after injury in Rome

Iga Swiatek, the reigning French Open champion, said she will know the extent of the injury she picked up at the Italian Open in the coming few days. The World No 1 suffered a thigh injury and was forced to retire in the quarter-final against Elena Rybakina. At the point of the injury, the match was delicately poised at one set apiece and 2-2 in the decider when the two-time defending champion felt unable to continue .

“We’re checking it (the injury),” tweeted the Polish star, who also won the French Open in 2020. “During the second set I got a thigh injury. The diagnostic is in progress. “More info in the following days. Will keep you updated.” Swiatek, also the reigning US Open winner, had roared through the first set before Rybakina levelled the match in the second with her typical never-say-die attitude. The Kazakhstan player, who won Wimbledon last year, took the second set in a tie break.

The Polish player rushed to pick up a ball to her right during the tiebreak when she stumbled and came to a complete halt. She persevered to keep going but called it quits at 2-2 in the third. Later Rybakina said, “I saw something happen in the tiebreak, on almost the last point but I didn’t know how serious it is. I saw that the first two games she started really aggressive so I understood that she couldn’t really move that much.” Seventh seed Rybakina next faces former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the semi-final. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News ,  India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .