Maria Sharapova to miss Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Toronto
Tennis Canada – Canadian Bianca Andreescu to move into main draw
– Carol Zhao receives qualifying wild card
Toronto, August 3, 2017 – Tennis Canada announced Thursday that five-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova will miss the 2017 Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Toronto due to injury. Sharapova suffered from pain in her left forearm earlier this week at the WTA event in Stanford and was forced to withdraw.
“I am so sorry to be missing Rogers Cup this year,” Sharapova said. “I am so appreciative to the tournament for the wild card and my fans in Toronto for their support. I am disappointed that injury is keeping me from the tennis court once again, and I will work as hard as I can to return to the game I love as soon as possible.”
Taking Sharapova’s place will be 17-year-old Canadian rising star Bianca Andreescu of Toronto, who originally had received a qualifying wild card. Andreescu is currently competing in Washington, where she earned her first WTA main draw victory earlier this week. There will now be three Canadians in the Rogers Cup main draw, with Andreescu joining Eugenie Bouchard and Francoise Abanda.
The open qualifying wild card will now be given to Canadian Carol Zhao. The final qualifying wild card will go to either Charlotte Robillard-Millette or Carson Branstine, who are facing off on Thursday in the pre-qualifying tournament final.
“We wish Maria the best and hope she is able to return to the court 100 per cent healthy soon,” said Karl Hale, Rogers Cup Toronto tournament director. “We know many of our fans were excited to see her play, but we have a fabulous line-up of athletes coming to Toronto next week with all of the Top 10 players in the world, including defending champion Simona Halep and Venus Williams, plus Genie Bouchard and all of our Canadians. Our spectators are in for an amazing week of tennis and entertainment.”
Owned and operated by Tennis Canada, Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is celebrating the 125th anniversary of the women’s tournament this year, welcoming the best players of the WTA from August 5-13 at Aviva Centre in Toronto. As a not-for-profit organization, Tennis Canada invests all net proceeds from the tournament right back into growing the sport of tennis across Canada. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit rogerscup.com.
Links:
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Official Tennis Canada Site tenniscanada.com
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About Rogers Cup presented by National Bank
Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is a Tennis Canada owned and operated world-class tournament celebrating its 125th anniversary of the women’s event from August 5-13, 2017 at Aviva Centre in Toronto and its 137th anniversary of the men’s event from August 4-13, 2017 at Uniprix Stadium in Montreal. As a WTA Premier 5 tournament, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament, and US Open Series event, Rogers Cup presented by National Bank will showcase the world’s best players. Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is the third-oldest title in tennis, behind only Wimbledon and the US Open. For more information and tickets visit www.rogerscup.com.
About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth of tennis in Canada and a vision to become a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier Rogers Cup presented by National Bank WTA and ATP World Tour events, 10 professional ITF-sanctioned events and financially supports 12 other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates national junior training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and Calgary. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the International Wheelchair Tennis Association, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Fed Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada, please visit our website at www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
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Nicole Watts
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nwatts@tenniscanada.com or 416-665-9777 ext. 4092
Caroline Anderson
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canderson@tenniscanada.com or 416-665-9777 ext. 4545