Sports Then and Now

After having his best French Open performance ever in 2011, Mardy Fish will miss the 2011 tournament due to illness.

Organizers have confirmed that Mardy Fish has been forced to pull out of the upcoming French Open, due to illness. The American had been something of an outsider in the French Open betting odds, prior to his withdrawal.

Fish, the US number one, was struck down by an unexpected illness, earlier in the year, which had left him feeling lethargic.

It is continuing to leave him fatigued, and he has decided that he will not be fit enough to take his place in the main draw at Roland Garros.

Fish has struggled in Paris, in the past, but secured his best performance at the French Open last year, when reaching the third round, before losing to home player, Gilles Simon.

The world number 10 has not played a competitive match since March, and will now focus on getting back to full fitness in time for Wimbledon, in June.

Fish is the second top-10 player to withdraw from the French Open, with Sweden’s Robin Soderling also missing out, as he continues his recover from illness.

Soderling remains the only man to beat Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros, but he will play no part this year. He will also miss Wimbledon and, most likely, the Olympic Games.

With Pere Riba and Pablo Cuevas also pulling out, Daniel Giemno-Traver, Blaz Kavcic, Simone Bolelli, and Frank Dancevic have been handed spots in the main draw.

Meanwhile, in the women’s singles, Daniela Hantuchova, Andrea Petkovic, Timea Bacsinszky, and Agnes Szavay have all withdrawn. Instead, Mathilde Johansson, Lesia Tsurenko, Laura Pous Tio, and Paula Ormaechea will take their places in the tournament, which starts on May 27.

For more information on clay court tennis and, indeed, all aspects of the sport, visit Betfair Tennis.