Bianca Andreescu to miss remainder of season to focus on health, training

In a statement, Andreescu said she is pulling out of the French Open as well

TENNIS-USOPEN/ANDREESCU-TROPHY [File] 2019 US Open winner Bianca Andreescu | Reuters

Last year’s US Open champion Bianca Andreescu announced that she is pulling out of the 2020 French Open and taking the rest of the season off to focus on her “health and training”.

In a statement, the Canadian tennis player said that she is looking forward to improving her game and the 2021 season.

“I have come to the difficult decision to skip the clay court swing this year and will be taking the remainder of the season off to focus on my health and training,” the statement read.

“As hard as it was to come to this conclusion, I have so much to look forward to in 2021, including the Olympics. I want to use this time to focus on my game so I can come back stronger and better than ever.”

The 20-year-old has not played on tour since the WTA Finals in Shenzhen last year where she retired with a knee injury. She also missed the Australian Open in January due to the injury.

Andreescu was unable to defend her US Open crown, having withdrawn from the event citing lack of preparation and “unforeseen challenges” including the COVID-19 crisis.

The French Open is scheduled to begin on September 27 after being postponed from its original slot in May due to the coronavirus pandemic. Around 5,000 fans will be allowed to attend the grand slam event at Roland Garros as opposed to 11,500 that was decided earlier, organisers have confirmed.

Apart from Andreescu, defending champion and world number one Ashleigh Barty and newly crowned US Open champion Naomi Osaka will also miss this year’s French Open.

(With inputs from agencies)

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