Maria Sakkari has gotten more bad news after a disappointing US Open campaign as the Greek tennis star won't be able to defend her title in Guadalajara this month due to her ongoing shoulder injury.
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After missing the WTA 1000 tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati at the start of the North American hard-court swing, the former world No. 3 still went to Flushing Meadows to at least try to play at the final Grand Slam of the season. But after just one set and dropping it 2-6 to 80th-ranked Wang Yafan, the 29-year-old retired the match.
Now, sheis also set to miss Guadalajara - a place where she won her first and lone WTA 1000 title last year.
"Unfortunately, I won't be able to play at @glopen (starts on September 17th) this year I am still recovering from a shoulder injury and it needs more time to heal. Last year, I experienced one of the best moments of my career there and it's one of my favorite tournaments to compete in. To all my fans in Mexico, I hope to see you soon and thank you for your continued support!" the world No. 9 wrote in a message posted on her Instagram Story.
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Why Guadalajara was more than just a win for Sakkari last year?
12 months ago, the Greek suffered a shock US Open first-round loss to Rebeka Masarova - which continued her poor run at the Grand Slam level. Shortly after the match ended, the 29-year-old burst into tears during her presser and admitted that she was struggling and indicated that she may even take a break from tennis.
But after taking a couple of days to think about what to do next, the former world No. 3 decided to keep playing. And a few weeks later, she ended up making it all the way in Mexico without a dropped set in her five matches played there - that triumph ended her streak of six consecutive losses in WTA finals.
Afterward, Sakkari became emotional and highlighted the victory meant so much to her because of everything that happened at the US Open and also because she wanted to shut up her critics and doubters.
