Injury rules Mauresmo out of Aussie Open

Fourth seed Amelie Mauresmo has withdrawn from her Australian Open quarter-final with a back injury.

The 24-year-old, who had not dropped a set all tournament and was considered one of the favourites for the title, was due to play Colombian Fabiola Zuluaga.

Mauresmo suffered the injury early in her fourth-round match against Australian Alicia Molik but battled on for a 7-5 7-5 victory.

A scan confirmed a slight muscle tear and Mauresmo’s coach Loic Courteau had warned she would not risk aggravating the injury by playing on.

A final decision was deferred until today but after a light warm-up on Rod Laver Arena she was forced to default and hand Zuluaga an easy ride into her first Grand Slam semi-final.

Mauresmo hit with her coach for just 25 minutes and was in tears on the side of the court, burying her head in a towel, as Courteau and a trainer tried to console her.