Karolina Pliskova withdrew from the semi-final of the 2024 Qatar against Iga Swiatek. The Czech star’s attempt to climb back up the rankings hit a wall after she suffered a lower back injury.
Pliskova, a former World No.1, has seen her ranking slide down in the past couple of years. After finishing the 2023 season as World No.37, she fell further after a torrid start to 2024. She defeated Naomi Osaka in the first round of the Brisbane International but lost her next three ties on the trot. This meant first-round exits from the Adelaide International and the Australian Open.
Resultantly, Karolina Pliskova languished at World No.77 after the Grand Slam Down Under. However, the two-time Majors runner-up showed her pedigree by lifting her first WTA title in over four years. She won the WTA 250 Winners Open in Romania to rise to World No.59. Continuing her great form, she stormed into the semi-finals of the WTA 1000 Qatar Open.
However, her hopes of charting a successful comeback to the elite leagues were cut short. Pliskova announced her last-moment withdrawal due to a back injury, saying she would undergo MRI scans.
The two-time WTA 1000 champion claimed her hectic schedule over the past two weeks fatigued her and caused the injury. Pliskova made headlines after she flew thousands of kilometres from Cluj, Romania, to Doha, Qatar, to play the first round of the Qatar Open barely 24 hours after winning the final of the Winners Open. While she fought through it for the initial rounds, the fatigue seemingly got to her body before the penultimate stage.
Karolina Pliskova will hope this lower back injury is nothing serious. The live rankings show her rising to World No.36, a 23-place jump that would surely boost her confidence. The Czech icon will want to be back on the court as soon as possible to build upon this momentum and get back to the top level for one final flourish before retirement.
Pliskova has never suffered a major lower back injury before. Her biggest issues have been with her wrists and hands, which forced her to take a hiatus in early 2022, causing her rankings to dip. This back injury break will also act as a rest period after a hectic couple of weeks. She will look to be back with a bang, refreshed and confident.
