Kiki Bertens has already played her last game of the year. The Westland is putting an end to her season and is focusing on 2021, her coach Elise Tamaëla confirms to NU.nl on Monday.
The tennis season will continue for a while, but many WTA tournaments in the fall have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 28-year-old Bertens could only have participated in the hard court tournaments in the Czech Ostrava (19-25 October) and the Austrian Linz (9-15 November).
The current number nine in the world said last Sunday after her elimination in the fourth round of Roland Garros that she did not want to switch from clay to hard court. In the past week it was therefore decided to put an end to this season.
In the tennis year 2020 disrupted by the corona crisis, Bertens played a total of seven tournaments (excluding her participation in the Fed Cup). The leader of Dutch tennis reached her peak in February by winning the hard court tournament in St. Petersburg and conquering the tenth WTA title of her career.
Bertens could not live up to expectations at the Grand Slams. At the Australian Open, she stranded in the eighth finals and at Roland Garros, her favorite Grand Slam tournament, Bertens was eliminated in the fourth round after a dramatic preparation in the fourth round by the Italian qualifier Martina Trevisan.
Bertens, who saw Wimbledon be canceled and did not want to participate in the US Open due to the corona virus, will now focus on the tournaments in Australia in early 2021. Normally, the Dutch plays the Brisbane hard court tournament to prepare for the Australian Open (January 18-31).
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