Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from the U.S. Open due to a right leg injury. The 28-year-old Russian tennis star made the announcement on her Facebook page on Sunday evening. Sharapova was scheduled to play Monday, Aug. 31. This is the second time in three years that Sharapova has dropped out of the annual hardcourt event after winning the title back in 2006, according to ESPN .
“Unfortunately I will not be able to compete in this (year’s U.S.) Open. I have done everything possible to be ready but it was just not enough time. To all my amazing fans, I will be back in the Asian swing in a few weeks and look forward to finishing the year healthy and strong.”
Posted by Maria Sharapova on Sunday, August 30, 2015
The U.S. Tennis Association also announced Sharapova’s decision to withdraw via a press release Sunday, Yahoo reports. Sharapova’s leg injury has put a pause on the athlete’s ability to compete as of late. The last match Sharapova competed in was against Serena Williams in the Wimbledon semifinals in July. In August, she withdrew from tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati because of the lingering injury.
Sharapova spoke about her injury, which she referred to as a leg strain, during the US Open Media Day at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, in New York on Sunday.
“You don’t always know where some things come from, but sometimes you have to make adjustments to be healthy and ready for the big ones,” Sharapova said. “I’ve had to make adjustments throughout the year, and it only gets tougher as you get older, of course.” Adding, “I’ve done everything I could to be ready. There’s nothing more that I could have done. So, yeah, I hope to be ready.”
Now that Sharapova has withdrawn from the U.S. Open, The USTA has announced that 18-year-old Russian tennis player Daria Kasatkina, who is ranked 133rd, will replace Sharapova in the main draw.
Maria Sharapova is ranked third in the world and seeded second at the U.S. Open.
[Photo by Mark Sagliocco/FilmMagic]
