Iga Swiatek was left in tears after being forced to retire from her third-round Madrid Open match, just minutes after having her vital signs checked by medical staff.
The Pole had dropped the first set 7-6(4) to American Ann Li and looked rusty on Manolo Santana Stadium before responding strongly to take the second set 6-2.
However, the hot conditions in the Spanish capital appeared to take their toll on Swiatek, who quickly fell a break down in the decider.
She opted to take a medical timeout and told the tournament doctor she wasn’t feeling well, before having her vitals checked at 3-0 down and ultimately retiring from the match.
The former world No. 1 has, so far, struggled during the clay-court season, having reached the quarter-finals of the Stuttgart Open before falling to Mirra Andreeva for the first time in her career.
In her opening match in Madrid, Swiatek produced an impressive 6-1, 6-2 victory over Daria Snigur.
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“The past two days were pretty terrible, I think I have some virus,” Swiatek revealed.
“It’s been some hours fine, some hours pretty bad. I had zero energy, zero stability, and I just felt really bad physically.
“I felt very bad physically, and yesterday even worse. I thought I would feel a bit better today – and I did – but not enough to play the match. Before the tournament, I felt very good and was playing great, so it’s very sad for me not to be able to compete, because I felt I was really improving and was very optimistic.
“The tournament had only just started, so not being able to play is disappointing.
“In the third set, I started to feel unwell—dizzy and a bit uncoordinated. I couldn’t drink anything because I felt completely full the whole time, and my energy suddenly dropped. Up until that moment, I felt like I had a chance to win.
“Now I have to recover and surely in three or four days I will be fine to train again. But I feel like I had my chance here.”
Her match against Li marks the Pole’s first mid-match retirement since her Rome quarter-final against Elena Rybakina in 2023.
The American collects her second top-10 victory and will next play Canadian Leylah Fernandez.
Last season, Swiatek reached the semi-finals of the Madrid Open, where she was comprehensively beaten by Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-1.
As a result, she was defending 390 ranking points and will now drop 325 of them, adding to a difficult stretch for the Pole.
She could drop to world No 3 if Gauff reaches the final or Amanda Anisimova wins the title.
Swiatek will next compete at the Italian Open, which takes place from May 5 to 17.
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