Tennis》New tennis queen Rybakina will not play, Ukrainian female player will make up for the year-end tournament

Rybakina. (File photo, Reuters⁠)

[Reporter Liang Weiming/Comprehensive Report] The 2026 WTA year-end finals are about to start in Indian Springs, the United States. Kazakh star Elena Rybakina, currently ranked No. 1 in the world’s women’s singles, announced her withdrawal before the game due to “worry about her physical condition.” The vacancy will be filled by Ukrainian player Marta Kostyuk, who won the first prize in Madrid. The first match in the group was Czech player Linda Noskova, who won the Wimbledon Championship this summer.

"It is with great regret that I inform all fans and supporters that I have to withdraw from this year's WTA year-end finals." Rybakina, who won the Australian and US Open double championships this year and has won three Grand Slam gold cups in her career, only withdrew from the Tokyo Women's Tennis Top 8 last month due to a neck injury. Now, through a statement, he explained the reason for his sudden withdrawal from the end-of-season competition limited to the top 8 players in the world. "I had a wonderful season, but my body is not ready to compete. I plan to rest at home for a while, recover my strength, and prepare for the 2027 season."

Garbine Muguruza, the tournament director of the Women's Tennis Year-End Tournament, is also a former world tennis queen. She revealed that she had talked with Rybakina and understood that the new tennis queen suffered from physical problems at the end of the season and needed more time to recover from the wear and tear caused by high-intensity competition throughout the year. "We all like Elena and hope she has a good rest. We don't want her to feel that she has to play. She will only play when she is ready."