Halep has won the Rogers Cup and reached the Cincinnati Open final during North American hardcourt summer
Tuesday 21 August 2018 10:06, UK
World No 1 Simona Halep has withdrawn from the WTA Connecticut Open with an Achilles injury, one week before the US Open.
The Romanian won the Rogers Cup earlier this month but missed out on back-to-back titles after losing to Kiki Bertens in the Cincinnati final on Sunday.
Halep had accepted a wildcard to feature in the final warm-up tournament prior to the last Grand Slam of the season at Flushing Meadows, which begins on August 27.
"I need to recover in time for the US Open," she said.
"I really wanted to play it (Connecticut) and I saw that many fans bought tickets to see me here, but I feel very sore with my Achilles, and I need some rest.
"I had so many matches in the last two weeks, so it's tough. See you next year, and all the best."
The 26-year-old will be replaced in the draw by lucky loser Belinda Bencic.
In Monday's action, British No 1 Johanna Konta defeated Laura Siegemund in straight-sets to reach the second round while fourth seed Karolina Pliskova was knocked out by Ekaterina Makarova 6-1 6-3.
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Tennis is back on you Sky Sports screens with the Laver Cup in September while we will also be across the final major of the year in New York as the US Open gets underway on August 27, right through to the final with our live blogs, reports, features and reaction.
