Yanina Wickmayer (WTA 88) announced this Saturday on social networks that she was going to put her career on pause. The cause: back pain that doesn’t allow her to be herself on the field.
“As you know, my body has not been in very good shape since the start of 2024,” says the 34-year-old Belgian player on her Instagram account. “I have done everything in recent months to control my back pain and not suffer on the court, but unfortunately my body does not allow me to do so. Challenges, tough training and victories on the field have always been my motivation and the reason why I love this sport so much. Not being able to be that person on the court hurts. “It’s for this reason that I decided to take a step aside, to give my body time to heal and regain strength so that I can be myself again on the court.”
The Belgian No.3, 88th in the world rankings, was directly qualified for the final draw of Roland-Garros, the second Grand Slam tournament which will begin on May 20 in Paris.
Victim of a triple herniated disc in 2011, Yanina Wickmayer has seen her career spoiled by back problems in recent months. She returned to competition two weeks ago in Madrid, where she was beaten in the second round of qualifying. This was her first match since March 18 and her elimination in qualifying for the WTA 1000 tournament in Miami. She has yet to win a singles match in the final draw of a WTA tournament this year.
Former world No.12 and semi-finalist at the US Open in 2009, the Antwerp native left the WTA circuit in October 2020 and became a mother. She returned in February 2022, first in ITF tournaments and continued her progress until returning to the top 100. She now has the ambition of making a new comeback, once her health concerns are behind her.
“I came back as a mother to close this ‘tennis’ chapter in my own way, so you can count on me and my perseverance to do everything in my power to write another beautiful final chapter,” says Yanina Wickmayer .
