Playing on a super tight schedule has taken its toll on Karolina Pliskova. As the Czech was supposed to play her tenth match in eleven days, her body said ‘no’ and she had to withdraw from her Qatar TotalEnergies Open semifinal against Iga Swiatek.
After clinching her first WTA title in four years over the weekend in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Pliskova rushed to Doha where she proceeded to win four matches at the WTA 1000 event. However, the lack of rest and sleep have finally caught up with the former world No.1 and she was not able to play her Friday’s semifinal against top-ranked Swiatek.
Pliskova told her fans on social media:
Unfortunately my body couldn’t compete today in semifinals. The schedule of last two weeks was too difficult to recover from all these tough matches. I have an MRI scan tomorrow. Hope to be back on court soon.
As the WTA reports, Pliskova cited a lower back injury for her withdrawal. Top seed and two-time defending champion Swiatek has advanced to her third consecutive final in Doha. The Pole will next face Elena Rybakina, who secured her spot in the title match by defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2 6-4, marking her third final of 2024.
