Italian Open sees 22 withdrawals

Rome is usually the last big clay-court dress rehearsal before Paris. That is why this week’s attrition matters more than a normal tournament injury list. The Italian Open is still full of elite names, but a noticeable chunk of the field never really made it to the starting line — and some of the withdrawals are big enough to change both the draw and the French Open mood around them. On the women’s side alone, Emma Raducanu, Marta Kostyuk, Amanda Anisimova and Victoria Mboko were officially listed as withdrawals. ### Why does Rome matter so much? Rome sits in the awkward but crucial spot right before Roland Garros. It is a WTA 1000 and ATP Masters 1000 event, it runs from May 5 to May 17, and it offers the kind of long clay matches players use to sharpen movement, endurance and match rhythm before Paris. So when players skip Rome, the issue is rarely small — it usually means either a real physical problem or a deliberate decision to protect the body. (wtafiles.wtatennis.com) ### Which withdrawals actually stand out? Amanda Anisimova is the loudest one because of both ranking and timing. She came into Rome as World No. 6, then pulled out before her opener with a left wrist injury and was replaced by lucky loser Elena Gabriela Ruse. Emma Raducanu withdrew with a post-viral illness. Marta Kostyuk withdrew just two days after winning Madrid, citing a right hip injury. Those are not fringe names — those are players who would have shaped the second week. (atptour.com) ### Why is Anisimova’s case a bigger red flag? Because this is not a one-off. Anisimova has not played a clay-court match this swing. She withdrew from Charleston after Miami, then from Madrid with a wrist issue, and now from Rome with that same left wrist problem. Basically, the entire clay buildup before Roland Garros has disappeared for her. That leaves almost no live-match runway before a Slam that demands patience, sliding and long physical rallies. (wtatennis.com) ### What is going on with Raducanu? Her issue looks different but still serious enough to matter. Raducanu pulled out of Rome with a post-viral illness after being away from the tour since March, and she is now targeting Strasbourg, which starts on May 17, for a return. The catch is that Strasbourg is the week before Roland Garros, so even if she gets there, she would be trying to build clay rhythm very late. (wtatennis.com) She also missed the chance to stay seeded for Paris. ### Why did Kostyuk’s withdrawal feel so abrupt? Because it came right after the best result of her career. Kostyuk won Madrid, then pulled out of Rome two days later with a right hip injury. That is the classic clay-swing squeeze — huge mileage, quick turnaround, and not much recovery time between 1000-level events. Rome was a chance to prove the Madrid title was the start of something bigger, but instead it became a recovery stop. (wtatennis.com) ### Is this just a WTA story? No — the men’s side has taken hits too. Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from both Rome and Roland Garros because of injury. Jack Draper also withdrew from Rome and then Roland Garros after retiring in Barcelona and missing more clay events. So the broader story is not one tour melting down. It is the clay calendar exposing who is healthy enough to push and who is already in damage-control mode. (wtatennis.com) ### Does this change the tournament itself? Yes. Withdrawals create lucky-loser entries, open paths in the draw, and remove some of the matchups fans expected. But the bigger effect is on interpretation. A deep run in Rome still counts, obviously, yet the event also starts to function like a health audit. The players left standing are not just winning matches — they are proving they can absorb clay-court workload in the final two weeks before Paris. (atptour.com) ### Bottom line The real story is not a single injury. It is the concentration of them, right before the French Open. Rome has turned from a straightforward form check into a stress test — and a lot of notable players have already failed it. (wtatennis.com)