Elena Rybakina Withdraws from WTA Finals 2023

Elena Rybakina, the world number one and defending WTA Finals champion, has pulled out of this year’s season-ending showpiece at Indian Wells, drawing a sudden line under a glittering campaign.

The 25-year-old announced her withdrawal on Saturday, citing an unspecified medical issue and conceding that her body “is just not physically ready to compete.” The Finals begin on Sunday in California, but they will do so without the player who has come to define the women’s tour over the past year.

“I am really sad to inform all my fans and supporters that I unfortunately have to withdraw from the WTA Finals this year,” Rybakina said in a statement released by the WTA. “I’ve had an incredible season but my body is just not physically ready to compete. I’m going to spend some time resting and recovering at home and getting myself ready for the 2027 season.”

Her absence opens the door for Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, who steps into Group One in Rybakina’s place and now finds herself thrust into the sharpest spotlight of her career.

For Rybakina, this is a jarring halt to a season that had gathered the unstoppable feel of a dynasty in the making. She climbed to world number one for the first time in September, crowned by a commanding run at the US Open, where she beat Aryna Sabalenka in the final at Flushing Meadows. That triumph followed her Australian Open title in January, taking her Grand Slam tally to three, starting with Wimbledon in 2022.

The warning signs, though, had already appeared. Last month in Tokyo, Rybakina withdrew from the Pan Pacific Open with a neck injury, just a day after she had mathematically secured the year-end No. 1 ranking by winning her opening match. The milestone underlined her dominance; the injury underlined the cost.

Her withdrawal also strips the WTA Finals of its reigning champion. In 2025, Rybakina arrived at the event in Riyadh as the last qualifier and left as the unbeaten winner, turning a late ticket into a statement of authority on the biggest indoor stage of the year.

This season’s edition has already lived through turbulence before a ball has been struck. Initially awarded to Saudi Arabia, the Finals were moved in July to Indian Wells, California, after US military strikes on Iran in February and the subsequent war in the region. A series of other sports events in Saudi Arabia have since been cancelled or postponed following attacks on the country, leaving the global calendar in flux and the tour scrambling for stability.

Against that backdrop, losing its standard-bearer on the eve of the tournament is another heavy blow for the WTA. For Rybakina, though, the calculation is simple: protect the body that has carried her to the top and trust that the peak years are still ahead.

“The WTA Finals is a very special tournament and I wish everyone the best of luck this week. Can’t wait to be back in Indian Wells in March,” she said.

The Finals will move on without her. The ranking, the trophies, the aura remain. The question now is how sharp she will be when she returns to defend all of it in 2027.