Burel, Seriously Injured in the Knee, Withdraws During Her BJK Cup Match Against Turkey

After their comfortable victory against Sweden on Tuesday (3-0), France is just one win away from qualifying for Friday’s decisive match to secure a spot in the playoffs for promotion to the Billie Jean King Cup World Group.

But first, Julien Benneteau’s French team must finish the job against Turkey, a tougher opponent on paper than the Scandinavian nation, in Vilnius. The first player to take the court, Clara Burel, who had given her country a strong start the day before, did not find the same success this time.

The Rennes native had begun her match against Ayla Aksu, ranked 307th in the world, well, leading 4-1 in the first set. Unfortunately for her and her team, she was forced to retire after a fall while approaching the net, which appears to have caused a serious knee injury.

Her teammates had to help her off the court as Burel, who was already sidelined by an injury late last year and only returned in March, was unable to get back up. With this forced withdrawal, Turkey now leads 1-0.

Next up is Varvara Gracheva, who must deliver in her match to keep France’s hopes alive in this second group-stage encounter. There is no room for error if the team wants to avoid letting victory slip away.