Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic celebrates winning her semifinal match of the French Open tennis tournament against Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in two sets, 7-5, 7-5, at the Roland Garros stadium, in Paris, France, Thursday, June 4, 2015. AP PHOTO/FRANCOIS MORI
MELBOURNE, Australia — The WTA Tour says French Open finalist Lucie Safarova has withdrawn from the Australian Open because of the lingering effects of a bacterial infection she picked up last year.
Safarova also tweeted: “As an athlete I’m used to fight on court to win. Today it’s off court to get my health back…”
The No. 9-ranked Safarova’s best Australian Open singles performance was the quarterfinals in 2007. She won the doubles title at Melbourne Park last year with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
The 28-year-old Czech player lost in the first round at Melbourne Park last year but followed up with a run to the final at the subsequent major in Paris, her best ever performance at a Grand Slam tournament.