The news that fans of Maria Sharapova absolutely did not want to hear hit the waves on Thursday. The Russian, who beat Jennifer Brady in Stanford earlier this week, has withdrawn from next week's Rogers Cup in Toronto. The news comes after Sharapova withdrew from Stanford ahead of her second-round match on Wednesday. That lead to speculation that Sharapova would not be in Toronto, but it wasn't made official until Thursday morning. The website for the Rogers Cup made the announcement, quoting Sharapova.
“I am so sorry to be missing Rogers Cup this year,” Sharapova said.
“I am so appreciative to the tournament for the wild card and my fans in Toronto for their support. I am disappointed that injury is keeping me from the tennis court once again, and I will work as hard as I can to return to the game I love as soon as possible.”
Sharapova's forearm is the problem
Sharapova announced a problem with her left forearm in Stanford. She still has a wild card for the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati the following week. It's not clear at this point if she will also withdraw from that event. Stan Wawrinka did pull out of both tournaments simultaneously so Sharapova is handling the matter differently. The injury to her forearm did not seem major at first as it was described as "pain." Could be that Sharapova will try and bide her time ahead of the Western & Southern Open to see if her status improves.
Sharapova was only into Stanford and Toronto with wild cards as well. Losing the opportunities that they provide is no small matter for her. At this stage in her career, she needs to get ranking points as she entered this week 171st in the world. Getting into the big draws despite not having a ranking high enough looked like it was going to be a huge help for her.
The win over Brady won't hurt, but Sharapova, a former World No. 1, will only be about 145th in the world on Monday still.
Sharapova out, Andreescu in
The player that gains from Sharapova's withdrawal is Canadian Bianca Andreescu. The teenager is quickly ascending on tour and she is currently alive in Washington's round of 16.
Andreescu is among a large crop of teenagers that have made their way into the top 200. If she can win another match in Washington and then do well in Toronto next week, she might find herself within the top 100 at this early stage in her career. The Washington tournament will conclude this weekend while the 2017 Rogers Cup will run next week on the WTA Tour.
