Kerber’s withdrawal is yet another worry ahead of the Australian Open starting on Monday.
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Kerber among the few notables headed for the Australian Open in Melbourne untroubled by injury, here overcoming the heat of battle with Elina Svitolina of Ukraine at the Sydney International.
Defending women’s champion Petra Kvitova has withdrawn from the Sydney International, marking the second consecutive week that the two-time Wimbledon victor has pulled out of tournaments due to a lingering stomach virus.
Novak Djokovic crushed Rafael Nadal 6-1, 6-2 in the final of the Qatar Open, which was the only tournament past year at which the world No 1 failed to make the final, while Stan Wawrinka claimed his third successive Chennai Open title by beating Borna Coric 6-3, 7-5.
Despite those physical struggles, Kerber’s will to win carried her through to victory.
“It’s good to have a match like this under my belt”.
“To step on the court and play a full match with no pain, play three matches three days in a row, was a success for me even though I lost the last match”, she said.
Stosur will take on beaten US Open finalist Roberta Vinci in the first round, with the victor to play veteran Daniela Hantuchova instead of Radwanska.
In the men’s draw, Vancouver’s Vasek Pospisil ousted seventh-seed Ivo Karlovic 7-6 (4), 7-5 and fifth-seeded Andreas Seppi beat Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.
Less than a week out from the start of the Australian Open, Angelique Kerber has become the latest woman impacted by injury or illness.
The women’s top four – Serena Williams (knee), Simona Halep (Achilles), Garbine Muguruza (foot) and Maria Sharapova (forearm) – have all endured a troubled lead-up to the Open. After losing in the first round last week in Auckland, she was granted a Sydney wild card.
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With the tournament’s big names, including four-time champion David Ferrer, enjoying a first-round bye, the focus was on Karlovic as the only seeded player in action on day one of the Australian Open warm-up event. The world No. 6 was scheduled to face Germany’s Sabine Lisicki on Monday.
