Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka have dominated the women’s tennis circuit this season. Both the players are in the race to grab the year-end World No.1 title. However, Swaitek’s surprising decision may have made this race relatively easier for the Belarusian star, after her US Open victory. What has Swiatek done?

The World No.1 has withdrawn from the China Open, without specifying any particular reason. WTA released Swiatek’s statement on their official X handle, “Due to personal matters, I’m forced to withdraw from the @ChinaOpen in Beijing. I’m very sorry as I had an amazing time playing and winning this tournament last year and was really looking forward to being back there. I know that the fans will experience great tennis there and I’m sorry I won’t be a part of it this time.”

This decision might prove costly to the Pole, as this puts her World No.1 ranking in balance, and right in sight for Sabalenka. After her US Open victory, Sabalenka reduced the huge margin between her and Swiatek’s ranking points. Now Swiatek’s withdrawal from Beijing not only raises the chances of Sabalenka winning the China Open but also topping the rankings. Tennis journalist Jose Morgado also put forward his opinion on Swiatek’s withdrawal, as he wrote on X, “Big news earlier today as Swiatek withdraws from Beijing and will lose 1000 points.”

What could be the probable reason behind Swiatek’s withdrawal? The Polish star has time and again complained about WTA scheduling, which leaves little time for the players to rest and recover for the next tournament. It might be assumed that scheduling is the reason for Swiatek’s withdrawal. Even after her disappointing US Open run where she lost to Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals, Swiatek had criticized the grueling schedule.

Did schedule woes lead to Iga Swiatek’s withdrawal from the China Open?

Iga Swiatek has been quite vocal about the grueling scheduling throughout the season. However, this season has been tougher than others due to the addition of the Paris Olympics right after the Wimbledon Championships. Making the transition from clay to grass and back to clay before proceeding to the hard court is challenging for many players. And before entering the Cincinnati tournament, Swiatek made sure to point that out, as she said, “Our schedule is crazy, and it’s getting more crazy every year, which is scary. You just have to train wisely.”

She found support in Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rennae Stubbs recently, as Stubbs also took a dig at scheduling. She said, “Scheduling is killing everybody. You know, I do remember having to go to Europe after the US Open. Asia is like another it’s just, it’s just an added right? It’s more hours. You know, everybody who goes back to Europe after the US Open. Europeans like to play in Europe. Now, they got to go back home, and then back to Asia, and then Americans are going to go over to Asia. It’s like, it’s a, I mean, the only people benefiting people that live in Asia, great.”

Iga Swiatek might have taken a break to recover after playing consecutive tournaments since the Clay swing, but she didn’t cite schedule as a reason while announcing her withdrawal from China Open, leaving it open-ended for the fans to extrapolate the reason. What do you think could be the reason behind Swiatek’s withdrawal? Can she save her top position from Sabalenka’s onslaught in the upcoming tournaments? Let us know in the comments below.