Benneteau Pessimistic About Burel: "It's Likely a Serious Injury"

This Wednesday, France lost to Turkey in the Billie Jean King Cup (2-1 for the Turkish team). While Varvara Gracheva suffered a heavy defeat against world No. 77 Zeynep Sonmez (6-2, 6-1), the day had already started with bad news for the French camp, particularly for Clara Burel.

During the first match of the day in Vilnius, the Rennes native, who dropped to world No. 141 after missing the start of the season, had to retire while leading 4-1 in the first set against Ayla Aksu (WTA No. 307) due to a right knee injury. Carried off the court by the medical staff, she was unable to continue, and the French team ultimately lost.

Speaking to the French Tennis Federation media, the captain of the French delegation, Julien Benneteau, expressed his concern for Burel and did not sound optimistic about the severity of her injury in recent hours.

"It's tough for Clara, for the team—it's likely a serious injury. The whole group was deeply affected by what happened. It feels like fate is against us. There was a lot of sadness for her.

Now, we managed to win our doubles match, which keeps our fate in our own hands. We’ve qualified for Friday’s match. We’ll assess who is fit to compete, to see who is in the least pain," he explained.