The Asian swing has always had to face the problem of retiring players. It might be because it is the beginning of the season finale and players are generally tired or it can be a nasty time zone (especially for Americans), but historically top players do not seem to be very keen to come in this part of the world. This often becomes an opportunity for other players to rack up points (and money!)
So injuries, illnesses and fatigue problems blossom during this time of the year. The latest casualties have been Serena and Venus (for different reasons). Serena has the flu and Venus is struggling with her back.
From the Director of the tournament
Therefore it was time for diplomacy “We would have loved for Venus and Serena to play the China Open this year, but unfortunately players get injured and sick and are unable to compete,” Charles Hsiung said (the director of the tournament) “We hope that they both recover quickly and look forward to them returning to the National Tennis Stadium in 2013,” he added.
From Serena
“Flu no fun :-(” was the short tweet from Serena
From Venus
“I was looking forward to playing at the China Open this year, but am currently working through a minor back injury and will unfortunately need more time to recover,” she said.
