Kiki Bertens was forced to withdraw from the Ricoh Open this week after her calf's MRI result showed a tear in the muscle. The Dutchwoman will have to sit out of her home tournament in the Netherlands, despite being one of the favorites to win the trophy considering her recent form.
Berten's fresh off a deep run in Paris which followed up title in Nürnberg
The world number 27 won her second career WTA singles title three weeks ago at the Nürnberger Versicherungscup. Bertens won the title as a qualifier as she won seven matches in seven days. The Dutch powerhouse continued her momentum into the French Open the following week. Bertens won five matches to reach the final four after having beaten four seeds in the process. Her fairytale run came to an end at the hands of Serena Williams, but the Dutchwoman pushed the eventual finalist to her limits. Bertens rose 62 ranking spots in a matter of two tournaments, and the only thing holding her back from further increasing her ranking is her unfortunate calf injury.
Home hope's past results in s-Hertogenbosch
Bertens had never won a match at the Ricoh Open until her brilliant run to the semifinals last year. In fact, she had never won a set at her home tournament until 2015. Last year, the Dutchwoman entered the grass-court event with a ranking of 132. She upset the defending champion along the way before falling to the eventual champion, Camila Giorgi. She gained 110 ranking points after her run to the final four, but her health is far more important than an amount of ranking points and she should be able to easily make up for as soon as she is back healthy.
24-year-old tweets her withdrawal, expected to speak out publicly on Tuesday
Bertens tweeted on Monday, "Unfortunately no Ricoh Open for me this year. Today an MRI showed a tear in my calf muscle. We will do everything to get back on court soon."
The world number 27 will hold a press conference on Tuesday to discuss her injury and to express her thoughts on this untimely occurrence.