Aleksandra Krunic has been forced out of the WTA Finals in Indian Wells after suffering a knee injury, ending the season-ending doubles campaign she had earned alongside Anna Danilina.
The withdrawal means Danilina and Krunic will not take their place in the eight-team doubles field at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, where the WTA Finals will run from November 8-15. Krunic had been due to make her debut at the event, while Danilina was preparing for her second appearance after qualifying in 2022.
Krunic hurt her knee during the second round of the US Open doubles draw. She and Danilina were playing Tatjana Maria and Zeynep Sonmez, taking the first set 6-1 as the No. 3 seeds before Krunic was unable to continue late in the second set and the pair retired.
The Serbian-Kazakh partnership had secured its Finals berth through a consistently strong season, highlighted by the WTA 1000 crown at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open in Doha. They also reached three major finals together, finishing runners-up at the Australian Open, the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and Roland Garros.
Danilina and Krunic were among the leading teams early in the Race to the WTA Finals, with their first-half results laying the foundation for qualification. Krunic currently stands at No. 4 in the PIF WTA Doubles Rankings.
The Indian Wells event brings together the top eight singles qualifiers and the top eight doubles teams from the PIF Race to the WTA Finals Leaderboard. No replacement team or revised doubles draw information was announced with Krunic and Danilina’s withdrawal.
