The emotions are running high among players with the withdrawals of top-ranked WTA players like Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka from the Dubai Tennis Championships. Coming in the space of just weeks after a Grand Slam tournament like the Australian Open, players argue they haven’t recovered well, leading to several withdrawals across the tour from the Middle East Swing.
Sabalenka said her hip injury led to her withdrawal, while Swiatek cited that the schedule was not right. Sabalenka had previously even withdrawn from the tournament in Doha, where Swiatek was defeated in the quarterfinals. After noting the withdrawal of the top two stars from the tournament, Dubai tournament director Salah Tahlak said both should be punished through a deduction in their ranking points.
“I feel they should deduct points from the players. A monetary fine won’t help,” the director said via Tennis365. “Many years ago, Serena Williams withdrew and was fined $100,000. But what is $100,000? She would play someplace else and make $1,000,000. So the fine isn’t a big deal.”
These remarks, coming from the organizer, haven’t sat right with former US Open champion Andy Roddick, who slammed Tahlak for suggesting to dock points players earned somewhere else.
“So he [Tahlak] wants to dock points that they have already won somewhere else?” Roddick asked on his Served podcast. “They have earned those points. Can you imagine someone winning a play-off game and then someone taking it away somehow? He’s going to dock points from six months ago? How does that even work?
“Every point they have on their point total right now is earned because they have won matches, and now we are going to dock points? I don’t think that is very well thought out. That does not make sense to me. You’re going to dock them money, so you are going to take that because they can’t play your tournament for one reason or another, that’s already weird, and then you are going to take points away. That does not make any sense.”
Andy Roddick Explains Middle East Swing Witnessing Withdrawals From Swiatek, Sabalenka and Others
Over 20 players have withdrawn their names from participating in the Dubai Tennis Championships, including Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka.
This year, the Middle East Swing has come a week early after the end of the Australian Open, as compared to last year. According to Andy Roddick, the Middle East Swing has no one but themselves to blame because of the wrong scheduling.
“It’s unfortunate, but we play a full schedule. You’re the one who pushes for the designation of a 1000 in that region in February,” Roddick said. “It’s a terrible slot. People are going to pull out, especially people who are playing for Slams and number one. It’s going to happen.”
Swiatek, Sabalenka and other top tennis stars are required to play all four Grand Slams, all 10 WTA 1000 events and six other events to save themselves from deduction in ranking points. The WTA is already taking measures to make some amendments to this system by forming a committee led by chair Jessica Pegula and hopes are some improvements in the tour’s scheduling in the 2027 season.
Read More News:
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in tennis, college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
