World number one Justine Henin has withdrawn from next week’s Kremlin Cup with a shoulder injury. Maria Sharapova, however, has recovered from her persistent shoulder injury and will compete in Moscow.
You may be asking why Justine Henin is withdrawing when she seems healthy, actually, she has reached the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix semifinals today, playing impressive tennis. “We were told Henin had suffered some injury to her shoulder and although she is still playing this week, she would not play the following week as she wants to have some rest,” Kremlin Cup executive director Alexander Katsnelson told Reuters on Friday.
World number two Svetlana Kuznetsova has replaced Henin as top seed in Moscow.
As for Maria Sharapova, she has asked for a wildcard and she got one. Last week Sharapova said that she would not play again until the season-ending championships in Madrid at the earliest, but the Russian changed her mind because she feels fine and ready to compete.
Kremlin Cup will be the world number four’s first appearance since the shock loss to Polish teenager Agnieszka Radwanska in the third round of the U.S. Open.
Additional info: Serena Williams has also received a wildcard for the Kremlin Cup. (source: Reuters)
