Maria Sharapova ruled out of Aegon Classic Birmingham
Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from Wimbledon qualifying and the Aegon Classic in Birmingham due to a muscle injury sustained at the Italian Open in Rome last month.
Sharapova, who is coming back from a 15-month suspension for taking the banned drug meldonium, had been due to enter qualifying after rejecting a wild card.
But she posted in a Facebook message: “After an additional scan, the muscle tear that I sustained in Rome will unfortunately not allow me to compete in the grass court tournaments I was scheduled to play.”
The news means Sharapova will also withdraw from the Aegon Classic, for which she had been granted a wild card.
In her statement she added: “I want to thank the LTA for their amazing support on my return and providing me with a Birmingham wild card, a tournament which I hope many of you will be able to attend.
“I look forward to meeting you there next year. I will continue to work on my recovery and my next scheduled tournament is in Stanford.”
Sharapova was denied a wild card for the French Open and took a potentially divisive decision by the All England Club out of their hands by saying she would go through qualifying.
News of her withdrawal will end a potential logistical nightmare for organisers of the usually low-key qualifying event given the interest in her comeback.
Sharapova reached the semi-finals on her comeback at the Porsche Open in Stuttgart in May but it left the women’s tour divided.
A number of fellow top players expressed disapproval at the opportunities granted to Sharapova, with former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard branding her a “cheater” ahead of their recent Madrid Open showdown.
