Tuesday 3 October 2017 14:29, UK
Johanna Konta's hopes of qualifying for the WTA Finals have suffered another blow after she pulled out of next week's Hong Kong Open with a foot injury.
The move is believed to be precautionary, with Konta still hoping to play in the Kremlin Cup in Moscow the following week.
The British No 1 reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer but has lost her last five matches, most recently suffering a 6-1 6-2 defeat at the hands of Monica Niculescu in the opening round of the China Open on Sunday.
The 26-year-old Konta said: "I'm very disappointed to have to withdraw from next week's Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open.
"I was really looking forward to being part of this fantastic event again and seeing more of the wonderful city of Hong Kong.
"I want to wish everyone involved in the tournament a happy and successful one. I look forward to hopefully seeing you all next year."
Despite her poor run of form, Konta is hanging onto the eighth and final qualifying spot for the WTA Finals in Singapore later this month.
Kristina Mladenovic, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Coco Vandeweghe also lost early in Beijing, but Wuhan Open champion Caroline Garcia has now emerged as a danger.
Konta missed out on a debut appearance at the WTA finals 12 months ago when Kuznetsova won the Kremlin Cup to overtake her at the last moment.
Sky Sports Tennis will have all the action from the ATP China Open, Japan Open and Shanghai Masters before the action heads to Paris.
The Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan and season-ending extravaganza World Tour Finals at London's O2 in November end another memorable year which will covered via our website www.skysports.com/tennis with live blogs and updates as the season reaches its climax.
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