World No. 1 Iga Swiatek on Friday became the latest WTA star to pull out of next week’s Korea Open in Seoul.
The five-time Grand Slam winner from Poland cited fatigue as the reason for her withdrawal.
Swiatek is the fifth current or former top-10 player to withdraw, joining defending tournament champion and third-ranked Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Elena Rybakina, No. 8 Emma Navarro and former No. 1 Karolina Pliskova.
Pegula (ribs), Rybakina (back) and Pliskova (foot) are all dealing with injuries, while Navarro cited a change in schedule.
The Korea Open, which begins on Monday, was elevated from a WTA 250 to a WTA 500 event this year. The purse was raised from about $260,000 to $1 million.
With the withdrawals, the players moving into the main draw include former U.S. Open champions Sloane Stephens and Emma Raducanu along with Daria Kasatkina, Beatriz Haddad Maia and Diana Shnaider.
–Field Level Media
