Andrea Petković has voiced her apprehensions regarding Elena Rybakina’s tournament scheduling choices following the latter’s withdrawal from the 2024 Dubai Tennis Championships.
Rybakina showed resilience after her early exit at the Australian Open by capturing the Abu Dhabi Open title and securing a runner-up position at the Qatar Open.
However, her momentum was disrupted in Dubai as she missed the opportunity to contend for the WTA 1000 title due to gastrointestinal illness, forcing her to withdraw from the tournament before her quarterfinal clash against eventual champion Jasmine Paolini.
Petkovic and Stubbs shared their insights on Elena Rybakina’s withdrawal from Dubai and her overall tournament schedule during the latest episode of the ‘Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast.’
Petkovic acknowledged that while Rybakina’s scheduling choices during the Middle East swing were not as extreme as before the Australian Open, they still raise concerns regarding her management of workload.
“We talked about Elena Rybakina and her scheduling, and I wanted to revisit that because she sort of repeated it. Not in the same manner as before the Australian Open, but she played in every single tournament possible in the Middle East, and she performed remarkably,” she stated.
“She won in Abu Dhabi, reached the final in Doha, and then she had to withdraw from the biggest of the three tournaments, the WTA 1000 event, which offers the most points and prize money, due to gastroenteritis,” Petkovic added.
While acknowledging her illness as simply “bad luck,” Petkovic highlighted a trend of Rybakina overexerting herself in the lead-up tournaments before major events.
“That’s unfortunate luck. But it continues the trend of performing well in the tournaments leading up to the crucial event,” Petkovic remarked.
With a swift turnaround before the WTA 1000 event in Indian Wells, where Rybakina is the defending champion, Stubbs emphasized the importance of monitoring her schedule closely.
Drawing a parallel to Bayern Munich star and England national team captain Harry Kane, Petkovic expressed her hope that Rybakina avoids a similar reputation for struggling in significant matches.
“I’m concerned about the Harry Kane situation. I’ve mentioned it before; he’s an incredible footballer, and he’s now at Bayern Munich in Germany, so I’m well aware of his career. He faced similar challenges in England.
He’s an excellent scorer, but when it comes to crucial games, he struggles to find the goal. Now, he’s developed a reputation, both in England and globally, for faltering in big matches,” she explained. “While it’s not entirely accurate, he’s acquired that reputation. I hope the same fate doesn’t befall Rybakina,” Petkovic concluded.
