Madison Keys Withdraws from WTA Finals Due to Illness

Madison Keys has pulled out of her WTA Finals match against Elena Rybakina on Wednesday due to a viral illness, and Ekaterina Alexandrova will step in to fill her spot in the draw.

The Australian Open champion suffered two losses in the round-robin stage this week in Riyadh, to Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova, leaving her without a chance to progress to the semifinals on Friday.

After her match against Anisimova on Monday, Keys refrained from shaking her opponent’s hand, signalling that she was not feeling well and did not want to spread the illness.

Alexandrova is the second alternate in Riyadh. The first alternate, Mirra Andreeva, who is already participating in doubles at this year’s WTA Finals, chose not to sign in due to her inability to compete on Wednesday.

Andreeva has a doubles match scheduled for Thursday with her partner Diana Shnaider and may be called upon as an alternate to replace Jasmine Paolini in singles, as the Italian is out of the running for a semifinal spot and is also feeling unwell.

The schedule for Wednesday includes the final round-robin matches in the Serena Williams Group, with Rybakina facing Alexandrova and Swiatek facing Anisimova.

Rybakina has already clinched her spot in the semifinals as the group winner, while Swiatek and Anisimova will compete for the remaining place in the final four.