Krejcikova suffers injury scare ahead of Wimbledon defence

AFP | London

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Barbora Krejcikova faces a race to prove her fitness in time to defend the Wimbledon title after the Czech pulled out of the Eastbourne Open with a thigh injury yesterday.

Krejcikova was due to face France’s Varvara Gracheva in the quarter-finals at Devonshire Park, but announced her withdrawal just hours before the match.

The world number 17 suffered the problem on Wednesday during her second-round victory over Britain’s Jodie Burrage.

The injury worsened overnight and, with her Wimbledon first-round tie scheduled for Tuesday, the 29-year-old opted not to risk aggravating it.

Krejcikova is awaiting the outcome of a scan before deciding if she will be fit to chase a second successive title at the All England Club.

“I’m very sorry to have to withdraw from my quarter-final today in Eastbourne as I’m having some soreness in my right thigh,” Krejcikova said.

“Overnight it just didn’t get any better, it actually got worse. I think it’s better with Wimbledon in the next couple of days just to rest it and to see what’s going on and to resolve that.”

Krejcikova has endured a difficult time since defeating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the women’s singles final at Wimbledon last year.