American Sebastian Korda retired from his first-round match against Cameron Norrie at the U.S. Open on Monday with an apparent back injury.
Korda, 25, was trailing 7-5, 6-4 when he retired ahead of the third set. The world’s 75th-ranked player sat with his head covered in a towel at Stadium 17, having recently returned from a shin injury that had sidelined him since the French Open in June. Korda was coming off a run to the semifinals of the Winston-Salem Open, where he withdrew before last Friday’s match against Marton Fucsovics, citing an illness.
Clearly struggling with his movement, Korda called for a medical timeout early in the second set and attempt to shorten points as much as possible. He won 18 of 29 net points (62 percent), while Norrie sought to extend points and keep his opponent on the move.
For the 30-year-old Norrie, it snapped a three-match losing streak. The Brit did reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, where he fell in straight sets to Carlos Alcaraz.
Norrie absorbed 12 aces from Korda while winning a pair of break points to take the first two sets. Korda was unable to convert on any of his six break points and had 28 unforced errors.
–Field Level Media
