Tennis-Swiatek loses last chance to qualify for WTA Finals after withdrawing from Ningbo

Oct 20 (Reuters) Iga Swiatek is set to miss the season-ending WTA Finals after the six-time Grand Slam champion withdrew from the ​Ningbo Open in China with a thigh ‌injury on Tuesday. The Pole, who has played at every edition of the Finals since 2021 and won the event in 2023, had to reach at least the quarter-finals in ‌Ningbo ​to have any chance of displacing ⁠Czech Karolina Muchova ⁠in the last qualifying place. Swiatek was hampered by the injury in her 7-5 6-1 loss to compatriot Maja Chwalinska in the Wuhan Open semi-finals ​last week. She has won only one tournament this year and failed to advance beyond the ⁠quarters at any of the ⁠four Grand Slams. After careful consideration, I ve ​decided to withdraw from the tournament, the 25-year-old said ​in a statement posted on the Ningbo Open s ‌social media. I ve been experiencing an ongoing problem with my left thigh over the past weeks and I feel that giving myself the time to rest ⁠and recover is the right decision. Muchova,