Vika Azarenka is the last casualty of a rather bizarre tournament in Madrid. All seeds, except  of Simona Halep, crashed out before the quarters; eventually, also Vika had to bow because of a problem to her back to give a free pass to the quarters to qualifier Louisa Chirico.

Azarenka. I got injured in the first round

Vika confessed that the problem started at the very beginning of the tournament “Unfortunately in my first match I think I tweaked my back a little bit. It was really cold, and, I don’t know, I think it’s much easier to get a little bit hurt when it’s that cold. And the second match obviously I was in a lot of discomfort . Having a day off I thought it was going to get better. Today before my warm-up it did feel better, but once I started hitting it came back.

“I don’t feel that I’m able to compete today. I’m just trying to make the smart decision and see the big picture.”

Vika is still expected to compete in Rome.

THE DRAW