Elena Rybakina will not defend her WTA Finals title in Indian Wells. According to El Tiempo Tennis, the Kazakh world No. 1 pulled out for medical reasons, citing a viral process, and the organisers confirmed the withdrawal in a statement.
Rybakina said her body was not in a condition to compete. She described a season she called incredible, a year that brought her the Australian and US Open titles and the top ranking after two years of Aryna Sabalenka's dominance. She plans to rest and recover at home and prepare for 2027.
The replacement is Marta Kostyuk, who now takes a place in the group that also includes Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff. Kostyuk opens the tournament on Sunday against Linda Nosková, the Czech who is also in that group. For Kostyuk, the switch is a late chance to contest the top places at the season's finale, and the match against Nosková is the first real test of how quickly she can settle into a week she did not plan for.
The practical consequence is a rearranged field at the year-end event: a player who came in as the defending champion is gone, and a new name must carry the group's first result.
