Belinda Bencic explains why she withdrew in Toronto before stepping onto the court

Belinda Bencic was unable to compete last night in the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 in Toronto against Coco Gauff. The Swiss player, who had defeated Alexandra Eala in the previous round, announced her withdrawal before stepping onto the court due to a physical issue with her hip. Therefore, Gauff advanced directly to the semifinals without having to play.

Bencic later explained that she had tried everything possible to be ready for the match, but the discomfort made it impossible to compete. The Olympic champion indicated that the pain in the hip area had intensified in the hours leading up to the match and that even warming up did not alleviate the problem.

"First of all, I sincerely apologize to everyone who came to support us tonight. I did everything I could to be prepared, but I had hip issues; it was pinching quite a bit. I tried warming up, taking medication, and using wraps, but none of that worked. I am very disappointed that I couldn't play tonight," explained the Swiss player.

The severity of the discomfort led Bencic to make the smartest decision, which was not to take risks at this stage of the season. The tennis player acknowledged that even if she had entered the court, she would not have been able to compete at a minimally normal level against a rival like Gauff. "I couldn't move; I had no choice. Even if I had gone on the court, I wouldn't have been able to come close to my best level. It wasn't possible tonight," said Bencic, who described it as 'heartbreaking' to miss out on such an important match.

The withdrawal is a significant blow for the Swiss after reaching the quarterfinals in Toronto, but it also prevents her from aggravating an injury that could jeopardize her schedule in the coming weeks. Bencic also made it clear that she wishes to return to competition in the Canadian tournament in the future. For her part, Gauff benefited from the withdrawal and reached the semifinals without playing a single point in the quarterfinals.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Belinda Bencic explica por qué se retiró en Toronto antes de saltar a pista