ROME : Aryna Sabalenka said she was struggling physically after crashing out of the Italian Open in the third round, raising concerns over her fitness ahead of the French Open later this month.
The world number one lost 2-6 6-3 7-5 to Romania’s Sorana Cirstea on Saturday and required medical treatment late in the match before suffering her second defeat in three matches following a quarter-final loss to Hailey Baptiste in Madrid last month.
“I feel like I didn’t play well from the beginning till the end,” four-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka said after the match in Rome.
“I started really well, but I dropped the level. I felt like my body was limiting me from performing at the highest level.”
Sabalenka credited Cirstea for taking advantage of her struggles.
“She stepped in and played incredible tennis. She didn’t really give me many opportunities,” Sabalenka said. “That was a tough one. But I guess we never lose; we only learn.”
The Belarusian’s clay-court campaign has fallen short of the form she showed earlier in the season on hard courts, where she won titles in Brisbane, Indian Wells and Miami, and reached the final of the Australian Open.
Sabalenka said the injury appeared to involve her lower back and hip area and that recovery would now be her priority before Roland Garros begins in Paris on May 24.
“I’d say that probably it’s like my lower back, connected to the hip, which limited my full rotation,” the 28-year-old said.
“We’re going to have some days off. We’re going to spend it on recovery. That’s the plan for now.”
Sabalenka was runner-up at last year’s French Open, losing the final to Coco Gauff.
