Injuries, withdrawals and medical timeouts – Is clay to blame or the brutal schedule?

Injuries seem to be shaping the start of the clay-court swing, with a massive number of withdrawals across both the ATP and WTA events this week. Lorenzo Musetti, Marta Kostyuk, Matteo Berrettini, Caroline Garcia and Zheng Qinwen were among those who altered their scheduled participation due to physical issues.

A surface change is always demanding—physically and mentally—and with a packed calendar and very little time for adaptation, injuries were quick to appear. Several big names expected to compete this week, but injury setbacks kept them away.

On the women’s side, the WTA 500 Stuttgart Open is being held this week, traditionally one of the top events with a star-studded line-up. With a draw led by Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Jessica Pegula, a few major absences will definitely be felt.

Ons Jabeur sustained an injury in Miami during her match against Jasmine Paolini and had to pull out of Stuttgart. Barbora Krejcikova, initially planning to make her return this week, also decided to extend her recovery to avoid risking her body. Zheng Qinwen was also ruled out, though no official reason has been given. Marta Kostyuk, a finalist here in 2023, won’t be able to defend her points after suffering an injury during the Billie Jean King Cup, which will result in a significant rankings drop.

At the WTA 250 Rouen Open, two notable French players were forced to withdraw: Alizé Cornet—who had just recently returned from retirement—due to a triceps injury, and former World No. 4 Caroline Garcia due to back problems.

Over on the ATP side, the 2023 Monte-Carlo finalist Lorenzo Musetti won’t compete in Barcelona after sustaining an injury during the final against Carlos Alcaraz. His fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego, Australian Jordan Thompson and Czech star Tomas Machac also withdrew at the last minute.

Some players have even been ruled out of the upcoming Madrid Open, including China’s Zhizhen Zhang and Juncheng Shang. Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo has confirmed he will miss “a few tournaments” over the next weeks, which likely includes Madrid—even though he still appears on the entry list.

Additionally, some players struggled during their Stuttgart Open debuts: Clara Tauson, McCartney Kessler and Diana Shnaider all required medical attention mid-match, though none ended up retiring. On the men’s side, Chun Hsin Tseng—who entered as a lucky loser—needed treatment during his match in Munich against Daniel Altmaier, while Roberto Carballés Baena also received attention in Barcelona.