An emotional Katie Boulter retired from her first-round match at the Hong Kong Open with injury, leaving the court in tears.
The British world No.99 was down a set to 20-year-old Filipino Alexandra Eala when she called for the trainer and succumbed to her emotions when she decided she could no longer continue.
Eala won the match 6-4 2-1 (retired).
READ MORE: The towering figure who brought Reynolds’ wife back from the brink
READ MORE: Red Bull’s itchy trigger finger as ghost of Ricciardo lurks
READ MORE: Warner backflips on Konstas debate as old teammate firms
Speaking after Boulter left the court, Eala said on-court: “I’m a little out of words. I think this time of the year is a tough moment for a lot of players, physically and mentally being the end of the season.
Katie Boulter leaves the court in tears. Getty
“I hope that Katie can take this time to recover and just look back on her season proudly.”
Boulter, 29, has struggled in the latter half of the year, winning just eight of her past 21 main draw matches and failing to progress beyond the second round of a tournament since the Nottingham Open in June.
She reached a career high of world No.23 at the end of 2024, but her poor recent form could see her fall outside the top 100, meaning she won’t get automatic entry into the main draw at the Australian Open.
Boulter, the fiancée of Australian world No.8 Alex de Minaur, is one of many players who have retired from their matches of late after suffering injury or health issues.
British number one Emma Raducanu called time on her season earlier this month after retiring from her two previous matches with illness.
