The Qatar Total Open took a huge blow as No.2 ranked Simona Halep, withdrew from the tournament due to injury.
The Romanian won three matches before announcing her intention to withdraw in a press conference later in the evening. According to Halep, she was still suffering from the pain of the foot injury which plagued her during the Australian Open. She stated that she did not have enough time to recover and suffered pain every day.
Halep made the decision to discontinue the tournament after undergoing an MRI and consulting with doctors. MRI result showed she tendinitis on her fourth toe and fluid as well. The Romanian also announced she will no longer participate in the Dubai Tennis Championships next week. She joins Madison Keys and Maria Sharapova in the sidelines. Halep added that she will take it day by day and decide later on if she will be fit to play for the Indian Wells tournament.
Meanwhile, Caroline Wozniacki gets to keep her world no. 1 ranking after Halep’s unfortunate withdrawal. The no. 2 closely pursued Wozniacki in the rankings, and could have surpassed her if she won the tournament. However, even as Wozniacki got to keep the number one spot, she did fail to reach the finals of the QTO.
Wozniacki was able to fend off the challenge of former no. 1 player Angelique Kerber, 7-6 (4), 1-6, and 6-3 to advance to the quarterfinals. Kerber led most of the match, but Wozniacki relied on her superior fitness to pull off the win.
She was not as lucky in her succeeding match however, as she fell to Petra Kvitova, a perennial tormentor since 2015. The no. 1 seed has lost three straight to the Czech since 2015 in New Haven. Before the match up, Wozniacki was riding a 12 game winning streak. Her losing streak to Kvitova, however, was the one which held in the end.
Kvitova, who is known for her three-set comebacks, showed why she had Wozniacki’s number by defeating her 3-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5. The 21st ranked player said that she remained calmed to wither the rally of Wozniacki and later on increased her intensity as the match progressed.
If she wins the Qatar Total Open, Kvitkova will likely crack the Top 10. She is set to face No. 4 ranked Garbine Muguruza in the finals. Muguruza took the reamingin finals s
