Injury ends Kartal’s Indian Wells run in round fourImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Sonay Kartal had received medical treatment throughout the matchPublished31 minutes agoBritain’s Sonay Kartal says it was “one match too many” as a lower back injury forced her retirement from a fourth-round Indian Wells match against world number three Elena Rybakina.Receiving physio treatment between games, Kartal lost the first set to the Kazakhstani 6-3.Then, in clear discomfort as she trailed 4-3 in the second having been broken when she stretched for a return, she made her way to the net to shake hands.The 24-year-old had battled the problem through the tournament and reported she had to “pull the plug” on Wednesday as the pain got more intense the further the match went on.
“As athletes you are super in-tune with your body, and I’ve had it pretty much the whole event, so I kind of knew that I could keep pushing,” Kartal told BBC Sport.
“But today it was unfortunately one match too many.
“[I played] a super-tough opponent, so you need to be at your best. I was far from that but still managed to make it competitive.”
Kartal, ranked 54, had become the first British woman to twice reach the fourth round in California.
