Madison Keys has pulled out of her WTA Finals match against Elena Rybakina on Wednesday due to a viral illness, and Ekaterina Alexandrova will step in to fill her spot in the draw.

The Australian Open champion suffered two losses in the round-robin stage this week in Riyadh, to Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova, leaving her without a chance to progress to the semifinals on Friday.

After her match against Anisimova on Monday, Keys refrained from shaking her opponent’s hand, signalling that she was not feeling well and did not want to spread the illness.

Alexandrova is the second alternate in Riyadh. The first alternate, Mirra Andreeva, who is already participating in doubles at this year’s WTA Finals, chose not to sign in due to her inability to compete on Wednesday.

Andreeva has a dou

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