The WTA Tour is growing ever closer to the penultimate Masters tournament of the 2026 season at the China Open, which takes place on September 30th.
The Asian swing is often volatile for players’ withdrawals after such a long and hectic season, and swiftly following the final Grand Slam of the year at the US Open.
The China Open has been no different with several high-profile withdrawals, including five players ranked inside the top 20 of the WTA Tour.
That includes Alex Eala, who has opted to play the Asian Games for the Philippines rather than appearing at the China Open, as well as the longtime injured, Hailey Baptiste and Victoria Mboko.
More WTA Tour news
Most recently, the likes of Sorana Cirstea, Jessica Pegula, and Marta Kostyuk have dropped out of the competition, with all three players citing injury issues.
Pegula’s back injury is keeping her out of the tournament and she also missed the Singapore Open. Kostyuk has cited a wrist injury while Cirstea is struggling with a calf injury as she nears towards retirement.
Kostyuk’s withdrawal could have severe consequences for her chances of qualifying for the WTA Finals at the end of the year. She currently sits in ninth place, just one behind the qualification places, but she is over 300 points behind Linda Noskova.
Noskova will likely qualify even if she doesn’t fit in the top eight of the WTA Tour thanks to her Wimbledon win, so Kostyuk will need to really collect points in the final months of the season if she wants to qualify.
That could be a blow for the Ukrainian star, who will be hoping her injury is not too severe and she can return again in time for the Wuhan Open. She will certainly need to if she wants to continue to climb up the rankings in time for the Indian Wells event.
Elsewhere, the likes of Karolina Pliskova, Emma Raducanu, and McCartney Kessler have also confirmed they will not be playing the China Open.
China Open withdrawals
- Victoria Mboko (world No 14) – replaced by Lanlana Tararudee
- Alex Eala (world No 18) – replaced by Petra Marcinko
- Madison Keys (world No 22) – replaced by Paula Badosa
- Hailey Baptiste (world No 37) – replaced by Katie Volynets
- Karolina Pliskova (world No 46) – replaced by Magda Linette
- Shuai Zhang (world No 55) – replaced by Maria Timofeeva
- Jacqueline Cristian (world No 56) – replaced by Alycia Parks
- McCartney Kessler (world No 73) – replaced by Aoi Ito
- Emma Raducanu (world No 97) – replaced by Hanne Vandewinkel
- Jessica Pegula (world No 3) – replaced by Taylah Preston
- Marta Kostyuk (world No 10) – replaced by Jil Teichmann
- Sorana Cirstea (world No 16) -replaced by Sinja Kraus
