Former finalist Ons Jabeur withdraws from US Open

Ons Jabeur has announced her withdrawal from the upcoming US Open. The event is scheduled to get underway on Monday.

The women's singles draw was made on Thursday, which features Jabeur as the 17th seed. However, the Tunisian has now been forced to pull out of the event due to injury.

She took to social media to announce her decision, stated that she had an issue with her shoulder which wouldn’t have been resolved before the US Open.

“I am truly sad to announce that my shoulder won’t recover in time for the US Open. I feel I need to give 100% and today its not possible yet. Life has ups and downs, but sometimes in the very negative moments we all need to find the positive in it,” she said in a post on Instagram.

Jabeur has struggled with injuries recently. She withdrew from the Citi Open and Cincinnati Open citing a right shoulder injury. In fact, she played only one match during the North American hard court swing, which was the opening-round defeat to Naomi Osaka in Toronto.

The 29-year-old reflected on the tough season and vowed to come back stronger than ever.

“This year has been very tough for me, but I know somewhere the light is there. I keep smiling like I always do because I am grateful for my life, my family, my sponsors and the fans that have always supported me. And if you are here to question my choices and my team, please find a little kindness in your heart because you don’t know what I have been going through for all these years. I promise once I get my strength back I will come back stronger,” Jabeur concluded.

Jabeur's seeded spot at the US Open will be taken by Belgium's Elise Mertens, who is the next highest-ranked player eligible to be seeded. She is set to face Veronika Kudermetova in the opening round.

This means Mertens' previous spot in the women’s singles draw will be filled by a qualifier or lucky loser.