Iga Swiatek retires at Madrid Open after having vitals checked | Tennis | Sport

Iga Swiatek had to have her vitals checked by a doctor before retiring from her second round clash at the Madrid Open. Swiatek, 24, was up against American star Ann Li in the round of 32 in the Spanish capital.

Li took the first set in a tense tiebreak, but Swiatek showed some of her best tennis in the second, emphatically taking it 6-2. However, she struggled under the searing heat in Madrid and quickly found herself a break down in the third. She could be seen sat at the side of the court with her head in her hands, clearly struggling with the hot conditions. A doctor came to her side and checked her temperature and her vitals.

In the end, Swiatek decided she could not carry on and retired with a final score of 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 0-3. When she made the decision, the Pole could be seen crying as she left the Arantxa Sanchez Stadium.

It’s a huge blow for the fourth seed, who looked so impressive in her first match.She outclassed Ukrainian star Daria Snigur, overcoming her 6-1, 6-2 in the first round.

After her victory, she took to Instagram and wrote: “Happy to be in the third round. It’s always such a pleasure to compete at the Madrid Open. Hasta luego [see you later].”

The start of Swiatek’s clay season has been difficult. The Pole competed at the indoor clay tournament, the Stuttgart Open, but only reached the quarter-final. She overcame Laura Siegemund 6-2, 6-3 in her first match, but was then beaten by Mirra Andreeva.

Siatek took the first set 6-3, but the young Russian then took control, winning the next two 6-4, 6-3 to move into the semi-finals. Stuttgart and Madrid have not been the best preparation for the Wimbledon winner.

Last year, she got to the semi-final at the Madrid Open, only to lose 6-1, 6-1 to Coco Gauff. The Italian Open was even worse, as Danielle Collins convincingly overcame her 6-1, 7-5.

She did manage to save her best tennis for the French Open, where she got all the way to the semi-final, only to lose to World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 7-6, 4-6, 6-0.