Coming off her Wimbledon quarterfinal run, Elise Mertens has withdrawn from Prague. Mertens far exceeded her seed at Wimbledon and picked up a hefty load of points, so it’s no surprise that she’s taking a few weeks off. Another expected withdrawal is Maria Sakkari, taking this week off after her run in Athens. Both are making smart scheduling decisions and utilizing their successful weeks to give themselves some rest afterward.
Ajla Tomljanovic, who withdrew from Athens last week, isn’t competing this week either. Tomljanovic has been injury-prone throughout her career and hasn’t been able to put up many strong runs this season.
The last withdrawal from Prague is Magda Linette, who is currently just outside the top 50 and far from her career high of No. 19 in the world.
Who Replaced Those Players in the Main Draw?
Mertens’ withdrawal freed up room for Anna Blinkova, a player who isn’t having the best season but is certainly capable of playing great tennis. Blinkova has a few quality wins scattered throughout her recent tournaments and always has the potential to put together a run.
Polina Kudermetova lost to Sakkari in the first round of Athens but will now take her place in Prague. Kudermetova hasn’t won a main-draw Tour-level match since Charleston, but has found success in qualifiers and at the lower levels.
Replacing Tomljanovic is Aliaksandra Sasnovich, who was an alternate last week in Athens. Taking Linette’s place is Yue Yuan, who will have the tough task of facing rising Czech player Nikola Bartunkova in the first round.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
