Update: The story on Justine Henin-Hardenne keeps getting stranger by the hour.
Now, just moments after the Medibank International in Sydney announced that the world’s number one tennis player would be pulling out of next week’s event, the Australian Open officials have delivered a surprising announcement that Henin-Hardenne has pulled out of the Australian Open.
What makes this so strange is the fact that no reason has been given and Justine is not known to be suffering from any significant injuries.
(Original Story Below)
World number one Justine Henin-Hardenne will start the 2007 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season with a withdrawal from her only warm-up to the Australian Open, the Medibank International in Sydney.
Henin-Hardenne, the finalist at Melbourne in 2006, has declared her intention to skip next week’s Tier II event, but has not yet given an official reason for her withdrawal.
According to the tournament staff, she has pulled out due to personal reasons.
Tournament director Craig Watson said senior officials from the WTA Tour informed them of Henin-Hardenne’s decision.
“I was told the withdrawal was for personal reasons,” said Watson.
…
“I believe she is quite upset and we certainly wish her the best and hope she is able to return to the courts very soon.”Watson said it is understood that Henin-Hardenne will be issuing a statement on Friday. Another Sydney tournament official said the announcement will likely come from Europe, and from her Web site.
(source: International Herald Tribune)
Hopefully, we will hear more soon from Justine herself about the real reasons behind her decision to skip the event, especially as her website said only days ago that she was preparing to fly to Sydney and attempt to defend her 2006 title.
(Thanks Momofan for letting me know about the story!)
Wow, I personally do not like her but what a HUGE blow for the Aussie Open! Wow… Wow… It will be very interesting to hear why…