(Reuters) – Former world number one Venus Williams has been forced to withdraw from the Madrid Open due to a back problem, organizers said on Sunday.
The 32-year-old American, now ranked 21, was due to play her first-round match against Spanish wild card Anabel Medina Garrigues on the clay at the premier event on Sunday.
She will be replaced in the draw by 56th-ranked Stefanie Voegele of Switzerland.
(Reporting by Iain Rogers; Editing by John O’Brien)
