5 players who will miss the Wuhan Open 2024 ft. Iga Swiatek, Naomi Osaka
The Wuhan Open 2024 marks the return of the tournament to the women's circuit for the first time since 2019. The season's final WTA 1000 tournament will be held from October 7-13.
Aryna Sabalenka is the two-time defending champion from when the event was last held. Her winning ways came to an end in the quarterfinals of the China Open as Karolina Muchova snapped her 15-match unbeaten run.
Sabalenka will be keen to bounce back at a tournament she clearly loves, and mount a challenge for the No. 1 spot as well. Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro, Zheng Qinwen, and Barbora Krejcikova are among the other notable names in the draw.
However, a few big names aren't in the fray for the tournament's return. On that note, here's a look at five players who won't be participating in this year's Wuhan Open:
#5 - Jelena Ostapenko
Ostapenko claimed the doubles title at the US Open, her first in the discipline, and second overall after her triumph at the French Open in 2017. While she captured a couple of singles titles at the WTA 500 level at the start of the season, her recent results left much to be desired.
Following a first-round exit from the Guadalajara Open, Ostapenko pulled out from the China Open to recover from an abdominal injury. It had been bothering her for quite some time, and she still hasn't recovered, forcing her to miss the Wuhan Open as well. This has effectively put an end to her hopes of qualifying for the WTA Finals.
#4 - Danielle Collins
It looked like Collins would wrap up her farewell season on a high. She won the biggest title of her career at the Miami Open. She also won the Charleston Open, was a finalist at the Strasbourg Open, and reached the fourth round of Wimbledon for the first time.
Unfortunately, things have taken a turn for the worse since she retired in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics. She participated in only three tournaments since then and lost in the first round, including the US Open.
The American has been battling an illness for the last few weeks, and her continuing health woes have now caused her to miss the Wuhan Open as well. With this being her swansong, Collins would've loved to go out on a high instead of being on the sidelines, unable to even compete.
#3 - Elena Rybakina
The last few months have been rather tumultuous for Rybakina. While she has always been prone to one health issue or another, her frequency of withdrawals only increased in recent weeks. She then announced her split from her long-time coach Stefano Vukov.
Rybakina hasn't competed since pulling out prior to her second-round match at the US Open. She has chosen to miss the Wuhan Open as part of her ongoing hiatus to recover from an injury.
However, rumors abound that this isn't merely a timeout to recover physically. Her time with Vukov wasn't all that pleasant, and her physical issues could have stemmed from the pressure put on her by her former coach.
#2 - Naomi Osaka
Just when things were falling into place for Osaka, she met with another setback. The Japanese national pulled her back prior to her fourth-round contest against Gauff at the China Open.
Osaka played through the pain and even won the first set, and then her younger rival claimed the next one. The former World No. 1 threw in the towel at that point in order to not further aggravate her injury.
Osaka has now withdrawn from the Wuhan Open to recover. She was set to compete in the qualifying rounds here, given the high entry cut-off for the main draw. She's likely to return to action at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
#1 - Iga Swiatek
Swiatek withdrew from the China Open due to personal reasons, which she recently made clear. She announced her split with her long-time coach Tomasz Wiktorowski on Friday, October 4. Since she's still looking for his replacement, she has now withdrawn from the Wuhan Open as well.
Swiatek was last seen on the hard courts of the US Open, where she lost to Pegula in the quarterfinals. This has been a great season for her, with four WTA 1000 titles along with yet another French Open crown.
However, Swiatek's decision to split with her coach signals her desire for further improvement. She's likely to return to action at the WTA Finals, where she's the defending champion.