World No. 4 Karolina Pliskova will not be kicking off her season next week as she has withdrawn from Doha. Pliskova, 29, has made eight appearances in Doha throughout her career. Pliskova debuted at the Doha event in 2014, when she made the second round.
Pliskova’s best result in Doha came in 2017, when she beat Caroline Wozniacki in the final to lift her first title at the tournament. Pliskova has missed Doha only once since debuting at the tournament. Following the withdrawal of Pliskova, a place in the Doha main draw opened for Ana Konjuh.
Doha update
OUT: Ka. Pliskova
IN: Konjuh
NEXT: Anisimova — Entry List Updates Women (@EntryListsWomen) February 16, 2022
Pliskova suffered a setback during the preseason
Pliskova hurt her hand in early December and that forced her to withdraw from the Australian Open.
“Unfortunately I hurt my right hand in practice yesterday and I won’t be able to play in Adelaide, Sydney and Australian Open this year,” she said in a statement in mid-December. “I am sad not being able to start my season in Australia and I will miss my Australian fans very much.”
While sidelined, Pliskova vowed to stay strong and return even stronger. “Some days are worse than others,” Pliskova wrote in December. “Unfortunately I will be out for a while and will not compete at my favorite tournaments in Australia.
But time and belief can heal everything.” Pliskova was disappointed because she wasn’t able to compete at the Australian Open but she was happy for Rafael Nadal and Ashleigh Barty. Nadal captured a record 21st Grand Slam title in Melbourne, while Barty became the first Australian champion at the tournament since 1978.
“All words are meaningless. Huge congrats to @ashbarty what a performance front of your home crowd! Congratulations to the legend @RafaelNadal for 21st GS. Incredible achievement,” Pliskova tweeted. Last week, Pliskova announced that she has returned to the practice court. It remains to be seen when she will be ready to kick off her 2022 season.