Iga Swiatek shuts down her season early due to thigh injury

Second-seeded Iga Swiatek has withdrawn from the BNB Ningbo Open because of a left thigh injury, and has opted to end her season early.

“I’ve been experiencing an ongoing problem with my left thigh over the past weeks," she said, "and I feel that giving myself the time to rest and recover is the right decision. I was really looking forward to competing here and I want to thank the tournament organizers and everyone who was hoping to see me play.

"I’m already looking forward to coming back next year!”

Swiatek was hampered by the same injury during her loss to Maja Chwalinska in the Wuhan semifinals last week.

Swiatek, who was still in contention for the last WTA Finals berth, later announced that she was calling it a season after what has been a challenging year.

"This has been one of the most demanding seasons of my career, with a lot of challenges, changes and lessons along the way," she wrote on Instagram. "I’m especially proud of the work we’ve done in the second half of the year and the progress that came with it. It gives me a lot of confidence in what’s ahead."

"The past few months, or actually the past couple of years, have been incredibly intense, and I feel I need to rest and recover my body fully. So that’s exactly what I will do, a bit longer this time. 😉 I’ve decided to end my season here, which means I won’t be playing any more tournaments this year."

Swiatek finishes the season with a 39-15 record and a title in Toronto.

The World No. 9 has been replaced in the draw by alternate Anastasia Zakharova.

wtatennis.com

Although it'll be truly strange not seeing Iga in the WTA Finals this year (after 5 straight years), I'm so glad she has decided to prioritize her health. 

I think it'll be beneficial not only for the coming season but her career in the long run. 

There really was no point in pushing yourself and making something worse, especially knowing that it wouldn't allow you to play your best when it mattered anyway. 

So I'm simultaneously sad and happy that she made this decision, but also cannot wait to see what she'll be able to achieve with some extra time off. 

Aside from allowing her body to properly rest physically and mentally of course. 

This will really allow her to work on her serve and game in general, we already saw some great results when she took a break after Wimbledon. 

She went on and won Toronto, so I have no doubt her new coach Francisco will come up with a great training block and Iga will come out stronger and better for it. 

And I genuinely cannot wait for Aussie Open 2027.

It's been a challenging year, so I hope the next one brings Iga a lot more joy and satisfaction. 

Something tells me that we'll be in for a great ride.

Thank you for the emotions throughout the season.

Rest up Iga, and enjoy life for a bit. 

I for one will be eagerly awaiting your return on court.

Jazda!