From Staff Reports
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Photo Credit: Brisbane International
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(January 11, 2011) Andrea Petkovic has withdrawn from the Australian Open because of a stress fracture in her lower back.
Petkovic, who would have been the 10th seed, took an injury time-out during her 7-5, 6-4 loss to Agnieszka Radwanska in Sydney to receive treatment on her lower back.
In a WTA statement, Petkovic said she’d struggled with back problems for months. But the pain worsened within the last few weeks, which motivated her to see a doctor.
“I've been struggling with it, but I've always believed it was going to be fine and so I pushed through the pain," Petkovic said. "The last two weeks in Australia I've been having bigger problems; I could only play for 30-45 minutes without pain. After yesterday's match against Agnieszka I decided to have an MRI and a CT and the results showed a stress fracture in my lower back.”
In the statement, Petkovic said she will have to take six to eight weeks off. The injury could force her to miss Indian Wells and Miami, where she reached the third round and the semifinal respectively.
Despite the injury, the German said she felt optimistic in her ability to heal.
“I’m positive this is going to be fine; I just need to take the time off to get better," she said. "I'm really disappointed because I love Australia. It's funny, I actually tore my ACL here, but on the other hand I also made my first ever Grand Slam quarterfinal here. So either it's a big high or a big low!”
Petkovic joins a growing list of players who are dealing with injuries. Serena Williams had to withdraw from the Brisbane International last week because she sprained her ankle during a match. Kim Clijsters also withdrew from the same tournament after she aggravated a hip injury.