TORONTO — Belinda Bencic has officially withdrawn from the National Bank Open presented by Rogers due to a troubling hip injury.
Event organizers announced her withdrawal shortly before she was set to face off against American star Coco Gauff at Sobeys Stadium.
“It truly breaks my heart to miss out on competing tonight,” Bencic expressed in a statement. “This tournament is extraordinary, and I was eager to showcase my skills before the fantastic fans here in Toronto.”
“I did everything within my power to be prepared for tonight’s match.”
With this withdrawal, the fourth-seeded Gauff moves on to the semifinals via walkover.
Meanwhile, second-seeded Elena Rybakina from Kazakhstan triumphed over Japan’s Naomi Osaka, the No. 11 seed, with a score of 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4, paving her way to compete against Gauff.
Earlier, No. 9 seed Elina Svitolina from Ukraine and seventh-seeded Iga Swiatek from Poland earned their spots in the semifinals.
Bencic, the 12th seed who clinched the title here in 2015, had reached the quarterfinals after defeating Alexandra Eala from the Philippines. She had been seen competing with considerable tape around her left thigh.
Semifinal matches are scheduled for Wednesday, with the grand final set to take place on Thursday as part of this thrilling WTA Tour event.
In doubles semifinal action, Italy’s Sara Errani and American Nicole Melichar-Martinez narrowly defeated Taiwan’s Su-Wei Hsieh and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 10-8.
In the quarterfinals, Tereza Mihalikova from Slovakia and Britain’s Olivia Nicholls secured a victory against Belgium’s Elise Mertens and Russia’s Diana Shnaider with a score of 7-5, 6-4.
